Walther Bernt

Walther Bernt was a German art historian, expert and collector of Dutch seventeenth century art. He was born in Krumau (Český Krumlov, Czechoslovakia).   Bernt became active as an art agent and dealer during the 1930s. He acquired works for private collectors in Czechoslovakia and Germany, including the wealthy entrepreneur Werner Habig (d. 1955). In October 1940 Bernt contacted Hans Posse (1879-1942), who acquired art works for Hitler’s Führermuseum in Linz, and offered him his services. Bernt served as the cataloguer for the December 3-4, 1940 Alois Miedl sale at Hans W. Lange in Berlin of art works confiscated from the collection of Jacques Goudstikker. During World War II, Bernt used the name “Walther Berndt” while assisting the Gestapo in Prague with appraisals of art objects confiscated from Jews in Czechoslovakia, with which Bernt was familiar.     After the unconditional surrender of Nazi Germany in May 1945, Bernt lived in Munich with his wife Ellen. Among other activities, he produced certificates of authenticity for art dealers from the 1950s to the 1970s. Like many German art experts who had assisted Nazi authorities, Bernt made himself useful to Allied officials by identifying looted art works that Allied forces had recovered in the theater of war, while concealing his own involvement in wartime art looting activities.   After Bernt’s death, his widow took over his business.   Bernt published four volumes on Dutch seventeenth century art entitled “Die Niederländischen Maler und Zeichner des 17. Jahrhunderts,” 3 vol. (1948, 1957, 1969). In these catalogues there are ten paintings looted from the Schloss Collection (Schloss German no. 37, 55, 62, 121, 133, 142, 149, 169, 179, 196), the majority of which were never recovered. The photographs of these paintings in the catalogues suggest that Bernt might have had access to these them or that he obtained copies of these photographs from unknown sources. However there are notable differences between the pictures in his volumes and photographs of the Schloss paintings taken after the collection had been seized and transferred to Paris, where it was inventoried before being broken up and dispersed. The largest chunk went to the Führerbau in Munich, from whence the works were all stolen in late April 1945.