PAINTING OF DACHAU BY A PRISONER, GIVEN TO HIS LIBERATOR

PAINTING OF DACHAU BY A PRISONER, GIVEN TO HIS LIBERATOR
Very rare original watercolor painting created during his captivity at Dachau by camp inmate ALBERT HEINZE, Block 20/4 (born 1894 in Berlin, arrived Dachau Aug. 6, 1942) and presented to one of his American liberators on the day Dachau was liberated! This artwork, measuring 10.25 x 13.25 in., lacks a title and signature, yet shows Heinze's perspective of the surrounding areas of Dachau, showing a nearby town in the background with a church evident, the view intersected by three rows of barbed wire fencing. The painting bears some creases and light soiling, else fine condition. SOLD WITH: a grateful A.L.S. in German from Heinze to 'the first American officer and [American] commander of our concentration camp', 1p. 8vo., Apr. 29, 1945 (the very day the main camp was liberated), presenting this painting and two others as 'a small token of our heartfelt thanks, for our lucky liberation by you and your troops...' Heinz signs in full at the conclusion, adding 'former political prisoner'. Mounted and framed, with the reverse of the frame being signed by SIMON WIESENTHAL (1908-2005), Jewish Austrian Holocaust survivor, Nazi hunter, and writer. These items are accompanied by the original letter of provenance from the recipient of the artworks, Captain Henry P. Rost, Company E, 232 Infantry Division, who aided in the liberation of the camp. Rost notes in his letter: 'I personally inspected the main administrative headquarters…On the following day, during liberation ceremonies, was presented to me, the seal of the camp and three watercolors, and a letter of appreciation, by Albert Heinze, a political prisoner...' The letter of provenance is dated June 10, 1975 and mentions the items' sale to an individual. It bears the signatures of Rost, the buyer, and a notary at bottom-right. The lot also includes a 3.5 x 5.5 in. signed portrait of Wiesenthal, and two relevant photographs of Wiesenthal, one showing the Nazi hunter with a previous owner of this lot and another holding up the aforementioned letter. An important relic from one of Germany's most notorious camps.