Fountain from Kolbe Museum auctioned for four million euros

A bronze and travertine fountain by German sculptor Georg Kolbe, titled "Tänzerinnen-Brunnen" (Dancer Fountain, 1922), was auctioned at Grisebach in Berlin for €4 million, far exceeding its estimate of €1–1.5 million. The fountain, which stood in the garden of the Georg Kolbe Museum, had been restituted to the heirs of Heinrich Stahl, a Jewish insurance director who was murdered in the Theresienstadt concentration camp. Stahl had commissioned the work from Kolbe for his villa; the family was forced to sell the property under value during the Nazi era. The museum returned the piece to the heirs, who then chose to sell it at auction. The buyer's identity was not immediately disclosed, and it remains unclear whether the fountain will remain on public view.

This sale highlights the ongoing complexities of Nazi-looted art restitution in Germany, where institutions must balance ethical obligations to heirs with the loss of culturally significant works from public collections. The €4 million price—more than double the previous record for a Kolbe sculpture—also underscores the strong market demand for restituted works with compelling provenance. The case raises questions about how museums can retain important pieces when they lack acquisition funds to compete at auction.