Art Forgery Stories Lübeck
The medieval murals their painter exposed himself
A postwar restoration in Lübeck seemed to recover medieval paintings. The restorer went to the authorities with a different story.
The Second World War damaged Lübeck’s Marienkirche and exposed traces of wall painting. Restoration followed. The walls eventually showed figures presented as recovered medieval work.
On 6 October 1952, painter and restorer Lothar Malskat reported himself to the authorities. He said he had forged medieval paintings in the church. A conservation study notes that officials had already criticized aspects of the restoration without detecting the painted forgeries.
Malskat and his employer were found guilty in 1955. The distinction between a recovered image and a modern painter’s invention had to be resolved in court, years after the work went on view.
