Raphael Santi
During next the month, every Wednesday and Sunday, we will show you an artwork from the database of wartime losses – www.lootedart.gov.pl, conducted by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland. Due to the World War II, Poland has lost over 70% of its material cultural heritage. Starting in 1992, we have gathered information on over 63,000 looted artefacts. We are looking for almost 15 thousand paintings and although most of them might have been lost forever, we still hope that they come back to their rightful, pre-war owners. In most cases, it's a hint from private people that helps us trace our lost art. This is why it's so important that you can see those paintings. Sorry in advance for the quality of the pictures, but it’s often the only image we've got. So far we've recovered 28 artworks. Thank you for being with us.
We start with one of the greatest losses - Raphael's Portrait of a Young man. The most outstanding and one of the most beautiful of Raphael's masterpieces is at the same time the most valuable work of art lost by Poland. The painting was purchased by Adam Jerzy Czartoryski (ca. 1799-1801) with a view of the museum in Puławy, established by his mother, Izabela Czartoryska. Since 1809 the work has been exhibited in local Little Gothic House and in 1822 became a part of collections belonging to the Princes Czartoryski Museum in Cracow. At the time of the outbreak of war the portrait, along with the most valuable objects, was hidden in Sieniawa - it was bricked up in an annex. German soldiers discovered the hiding place and looted valuables but fortunately they left the paintings. On September 28th 1939, works were transported to Pełkiny from where the Rzeszów Gestapo took them and on October 31st 1939, it was confiscated by Kajetan Mühlmann, SS Standartenfuhrer. The portrait has been reserved by Hans Posse in order to include it into the museum of art in Linz planned by Hitler. During the preparations for the exhibition it was deposited in Berlin, in local Kaiser Friedrich Museum, from where Hans Frank imported it back to Cracow to make it an ornament in his residence of Wawel. The portrait was included to "protections" register of Special Representative for Inventory and Protection of Art Works and Culture Heritage Office, along with other 6 of the most valuable paintings from the Princes Czartoryski Museum, on September 12th, 1940. It was lost in mysterious circumstances during the evacuation of Hans Frank from Cracow (or sooner). It was speculated that the portrait was destroyed or stolen.