The Hunt for a 316-Year-Old Stradivarius Stolen in the Fog of War

[GeorgeH]

“The violin by the famed Italian luthier was plundered at the end of World War II and presumed lost or destroyed. Now experts say they believe it has resurfaced.”

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/06/arts/music/the-hunt-for-a-316-year-old-stradivarius-stolen-in-the-fog-of-war.html

 Sorry, behind paywall. Here is Chat GPT summary:

Here’s a comprehensive summary of the New York Times article “The Hunt for a 316‑Year‑Old Stradivarius Stolen in the Fog of War” (July 6, 2025):

⸻

Overview
    •    A rare Stradivarius violin made by Antonio Stradivari in 1709, known as the Small Mendelssohn, vanished from a Berlin bank vault during the chaotic final days of WWII in 1945. It had been stored there by the Mendelssohn family before the Nazi rise to power.  
    •    A violin labeled “Stella”, dated 1707, surfaced in the mid-1990s and was later owned by Japanese violinist Eijin Nimura. It was publicly exhibited in Tokyo in 2018.  

⸻

 Investigation & Evidence
    •    Forensic photo analysis by experts—including Mendelssohn descendant David Rosenthal and cultural property scholar Carla Shapreau—revealed matching wood grain, dents, scratches, and wear patterns between pre-war photos of the Small Mendelssohn and the Stella.
“It is one and the same violin,” Rosenthal said.  
    •    Shapreau, founder of the Lost Music Project, was astonished: “My jaw dropped … it had been renamed, re‑dated and was in private ownership.”  

⸻

Legal & Cultural Implications
    •    Nimura has not been accused of wrongdoing. His legal counsel stated they have no factual basis for any claim.  
    •    The discovery rekindles the often painful process of restitution for cultural objects looted during wartime, especially those taken from Jewish families.  

⸻

Context & Significance
    •    Stradivarius violins are extremely rare—about 500 survive—and highly valuable; one sold earlier this year for $23 million. Their provenance can make or break a legal and cultural claim.  
    •    The case highlights not just financial value, but issues of identity, heritage, and justice related to looted treasures hidden in plain sight. ()

⸻

Bottom Line
    •    A violin that disappeared from the Mendelssohn family’s Berlin vault in 1945 appears to have reemerged as “Stella” in Japan.
    •    Experts are confident in the match, but legal resolution—including potential restitution—is still uncertain.

[martin swan]

https://www.carlashapreau.com/1709-mendelssohn-stradivari

https://tarisio.com/cozio-archive/cozio-carteggio/hiding-in-plain-sight-the-case-of-the-stolen-mendelssohn-stradivari/

[GeorgeH]

Thanks for the links, Martin. I am not surprised that the infamous Austrian violin dealer/crook Dietmar Machold shows up at a key juncture of the story.

[jacobsaunders]

4 hours ago, GeorgeH said:

 I am not surprised that the infamous Austrian violin dealer/crook Dietmar Machold shows up at a key juncture of the story.

he is accused of translating a French certificate into English/German, did you notice anything else?

[Altgeiger]

Misread the story, disregard.

[GeorgeH]

1 hour ago, jacobsaunders said:

he is accused of translating a French certificate into English/German, did you notice anything else?

The “French Certificate” that he translated was a forgery. Funny how the forged certificate seemed to have first surfaced with Dietmar Machold who merely translated it and this became the "Stella" Stradivari's origin story.

From THE LOST MUSIC PROJECT:

“The 1709 Mendelssohn Stradivari violin is the same violin as the instrument referred to as the 1707 "Stella" Stradivari violin.  The earliest record located to date that mentions  the "Stella" is a March 31, 2005 provenance statement on the business letterhead of Paris luthier Bernard Sabatier written in French, which Mr. Sabatier denied having written and stated was falsely attributed to him.  This statement was translated into English and German on the letterhead of Austrian violin dealer Dietmar Machold and attributed to Bernard Sabatier.  This March 31, 2005 statement, fiction or fact, has become the "Stella" Stradivari's origin story.  The evolving violin dealer business records located to date for this violin contribute to an understanding of its history. “

[martin swan]

What we're told is that Bernard Sabatier denies having written it. Whether it's a forgery or not is speculation.

[Blank face]

Today we could say “ChatGPT, write an origin story for a Strad named Stella in French”. 

[GeorgeH]

33 minutes ago, martin swan said:

What we're told is that Bernard Sabatier denies having written it. Whether it's a forgery or not is speculation.

It isn’t speculation. Sabatier denies writing it. That is a forgery by definition. Is he lying?

The “Stella” certificate apparently first appears in the possession of Machold, a fine violin “dealer” who was later convicted of defrauding people of over $100 million dollars and whose crimes included writing false authenticity certificates and selling fake Strads.

Who you going to believe?

[GeorgeH]

BTW, in an interview with Le Monde published on June 26:

“A forgery, not even signed,” Sabatier raged over the phone. “The name ‘Stella,’ I heard it for the first time two days ago”

So there’s that, too.

[martin swan]

I agree that the burden of proof would be with Machold (and Lebet) but we are still discussing hearsay.

Rather than choosing who we believe, better to have facts.

[jacobsaunders]

29 minutes ago, GeorgeH said:

and selling fake Strads

care to cite an instance

[GeorgeH]

51 minutes ago, martin swan said:

Machold (and Lebet) but we are still discussing hearsay

It isn’t hearsay. Sabatier personally says he did not write it. That appears to be a fact, not rumor, gossip, or second-hand information. 

 

42 minutes ago, jacobsaunders said:

care to cite an instance

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/dietmar-machold-the-renowned-violin-dealer-who-duped-clients-with-fake-stradivarius-8301364.html

 

 

 

[jacobsaunders]

22 minutes ago, GeorgeH said:

 

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/dietmar-machold-the-renowned-violin-dealer-who-duped-clients-with-fake-stradivarius-8301364.html

The Independent article is garbage. He didn’t sell “fake” Strads. What got him in trouble was selling real Strads to several institutions simultaneously, a bit like the Federal Reseve does with their Gold

[GeorgeH]

39 minutes ago, jacobsaunders said:

The Independent article is garbage. He didn’t sell “fake” Strads. What got him in trouble was selling real Strads to several institutions simultaneously, a bit like the Federal Reseve does with their Gold

No, it isn’t “Garbage’” There is this in Spiegel:

https://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/the-case-of-disgraced-stradivari-dealer-dietmar-machold-a-832274.html

And this in the Washington Post:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/music/dietmar-machold-jet-setting-violin-dealer-accused-in-a-case-of-fakes-and-fraud/2012/09/13/be7d80fc-fb85-11e1-8adc-499661afe377_story.html

And the 19-page single-spaced indictment. Or you could ask @Roger Hargrave personally.

[GeorgeH]

I see that there are decades of posts in multiple threads here, many in contemporaneous time, discussing Machold’s criminal indictment. I don’t want to rehash them in this thread. I was pointing out that it was not surprising to see his name show up in relation to a fake certificate.

[jacobsaunders]

If Machold goes for a crap every day after breakfast, it isn’t an indictable offence

[Pluto Vermin]

 

[Violadamore]

On 7/7/2025 at 3:44 PM, Blank face said:

Today we could say “ChatGPT, write an origin story for a Strad named Stella in French”. 

And you'll probably get something mentioning Tennessee Williams, as implied above.  

Oh, BTW, 

 

[Violadamore]

This may interest some folks, https://eijin-nimura.com/wp/profile/english/, and there's a nice bass side photo of the fiddle in question.  I always prefer going with primary sources, too,  @martin swan.  

[Blank face]

17 hours ago, Violadamore said:

And you'll probably get something mentioning Tennessee Williams, as implied above.  

Oh, BTW, 

 

Isn't really French, is it? Not very subtle.

[Violadamore]

On 7/8/2025 at 5:19 AM, jacobsaunders said:

If Machold goes for a crap every day after breakfast, it isn’t an indictable offence

Wouldn't that depend on the circumstances?       

[Violadamore]

1 hour ago, Blank face said:

Isn't really French, is it? Not very subtle.

Umm, to AI it might be.  The play and the movie are both set in the French Quarter of New Orleans, and the annual shouting competition happens there too.  If AI "sees" the word it's "looking" for........