Nazi-looted treasure returned to heirs in Australia after 80 years
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A small, brown, glass perfume bottle with a neat gold trim is causing excitement at Sydneyâs Jewish Museum. This piece, recently donated by heritage consultant, David Logan, becomes the first artwork in the museum that was taken from a Jewish private collection by the Nazis and subsequently restored to its rightful heirs some 80 years later.
The bottle comes from the collection of Loganâs grandfather, Wilhelm Perlhoefter, a prosperous merchant in Breslau who had a passion for glass, particularly for pieces made using the lithyalin process invented by Bohemian master craftsman, Friedrich Egermann (1777-1864). This process, which remained a closely guarded secret, enabled Egermann to create glass objects that resembled marble or semi-precious stone.