Master Art Forger The Story of Han van Meegeren John Godley Wilfred Funk New York Published 1951 by Wilfred Funk, Inc. 381 Fourth Avenue, New York 16, N. Y. Manufactured in the United States of America by H, Wolff Book Manufacturing Co, Inc., New York Contents INTRODUCTORY i PART ONE 1889-1932 35 PART Two 1932-1947 113 SHY MC. PUBLIC Illustrations following page 102 HAN VAN MEEGEREN, A SELF-PORTRAIT A DETAIL FROM CHRIST AT EMMAUS HAN VAN MEEGEREN IN FRONT OF ONE OF HIS MODERN PORTRAITS HAN VAN MEEGEREN AT WORK IN HIS STUDIO ON THE YOUNG CHRIST Author s Note When I was asked to write this book, by the family o Han van Meegeren, it became clear from the very nature of the story that the collection of material would present exceptional difficulties. I would be writing of illegal transactions which involved living men and women many of the events took place during the war, in a coun try under enemy occupation and, of the money trans actions involved, there would be no written record, since agreements were verbal and terms were cash. I found confusion, prejudice, much conflicting evidence and it is to van Meegerens son and daughter that I am prin cipally indebted for the material which I have used. To them, Jacques and Inez, my sympathy and thanks. Calcutta, jp o. JOHN GODLEY Introductory IN OCTOBER, 1947, a grey-haired artist stood be fore the District Assize Court in Amsterdam by his own confession, he had painted a series of eight pic tures which had been sold for over 2,250,000 as the work of Vermeer and de Hooch. After a brief trial he was proved guilty, and sentenced to a years imprison ment. Claims for damages and for unpaid taxes amounted to over three million dollars his remainingestate was officially valued at about one fifth of that to tal. A month after the trial, before he had begun to serve his term, he collapsed and was taken to hospital. His health had been bad, he had had a similar collapse a year earlier, and the strain of the preceding months and years had become too great for him. At the end of December he died. The name of this man was Han van Meegeren f and the completeness of his hoax should be recognized from f pr. Hun vim Mdy-heren. Han is a contraction for Henri or Henricus. the start. At the time of his confession in 1945, his Christ at Emmaus had been exhibited for over seven years in the Boymans Museum, Rotterdam. It had been sold In 1937 for 174,000 and was now recognized as one of the greatest examples of the work of Vermeer. His later pictures were no less successful. The prices paid for his two de Hooch The Card Players and A Drinking Party - were relatively low 117,000 and 87, ooo respectively but their authenticity was never held in doubt. It was with his later Vermeers that van Meegeren came into his own. After selling a study of Christs Head for 165,000, there followed The Last Supper 480,000 Isaac Blessing Jacob 381,000 and The Washing of Christs Feet 390,000. Finally, Field Marshal Goering himself paid the top figure of 495,000 for his last forgery, Christ and the Adultress. At no time up to his confession did any expert come forward to ex press official doubts as to the authenticity of any of these pictures. The van Meegeren story has been discussed and argued in artistic circles throughout the world. This was not only the achievement of a little-known artist whose work had been placed by competent judges amongst the greatest ofall time through the fact of its acceptance he had attacked the worlds confidence in the whole basis of artistic recognition and critique. His pictures had been widely acclaimed experts and con noisseurs had been unanimous in their admiration either, then, they were ignorant and incompetent, or van Meegerens pictures were as good as Vermeers...