David David-Weill (1871–1952) was a French-American banker, chairman of Lazard Frères in Paris, who built an important collection of art. His collection was plundered by the

Nazis Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hit ...

during the Second World War and over 2000 items seized. He was a major donor to French and American museums and galleries and a benefactor to universities.

Early life and family

David-Weill was born in San Francisco on 30 August 1871.David David-Weill.
Dumbarton Oaks. Retrieved 10 February 2015. He was the son of Julie (née Cahn) and Alexandre Weill (1834–1906). His father was a cousin to the three French Jewish brothers who founded Lazard Frères & Co. His parents had left France in 1870 because of the Franco-Prussian War, and settled in California, where Raphaël Weill, a brother of Alexandre Weill, lived. They returned to France about 1883. David-Weill continued his education there at the

Lycée Condorcet The Lycée Condorcet () is a school founded in 1803 in Paris, France, located at 8, rue du Havre, in the city's 9th arrondissement. It is one of the four oldest high schools in Paris and also one of the most prestigious. Since its inception, var ...

and the

École Libre des Sciences Politiques , motto_lang = fr , mottoeng = Roots of the Future , type = Public research university''Grande école'' , established = , founder = Émile Boutmy , accreditation ...

. He married Flora Raphaël in 1897 and they had seven children, including Pierre David-Weill and

Jean David-Weill Jean David-Weill (27 February 1898 – 30 May 1972) was a 20th-century French epigrapher, curator and collector. The son of David David-Weill, he graduated in law and was a pupil of Gaston Migeon at the École du Louvre and later of Raymond K ...

Banking career

Following his education, David-Weill performed his military service and began to work at Lazard Frères, where he rose to become chairman. He became a regent of the

Banque de France The Bank of France (French: ''Banque de France''), headquartered in Paris, is the central bank of France. Founded in 1800, it began as a private institution for managing state debts and issuing notes. It is responsible for the accounts of the Fr ...

in 1935.

Collecting

David-Weill began to collect from an early age. His acquisitions included paintings, drawings, miniatures, sculptures, furniture, silverware, and other items. He became president of the Réunion des Musées Nationaux and vice president of the Société des amis du Louvre. In 1931, David-Weill transferred part of his collection to a British holding company called Anglo-Continental Art, Inc, which was owned by a Canadian corporation that he controlled. In late 1940, David-Weill sent twenty-six cases of paintings and antiquities to Lisbon for shipment on the SS Excalibur to New York, where they were to be sold by the Wildensteins, as property of Anglo-Continental Art, Inc. However U.S. Treasury officials, concerned about their French origins in wartime, "descended on the elegant premises of Wildenstein, New York". The assets of Anglo-Continental were frozen by US officials and proceeds placed in a blocked account. In France, David-Weill's collection was looted by the Nazis during the Second World War and, according to German records, 2687 items seized.Harclerode, Peter, & Brendan Pittaway. (1999) ''The Lost Masters: The Looting of Europe's Treasurehouses''. London:

Victor Gollancz Sir Victor Gollancz (; 9 April 1893 – 8 February 1967) was a British publisher and humanitarian. Gollancz was known as a supporter of left-wing causes. His loyalties shifted between liberalism and communism, but he defined himself as a Chris ...

, p. 44. In later life he donated more than 2000 items to museums and galleries, including the

Guimet Museum The Guimet Museum (full name in french: Musée national des arts asiatiques-Guimet; MNAAG; ) is an art museum located at 6, place d'Iéna in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, France. Literally translated into English, its full name is the Nationa ...

, the

Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is the world's most-visited museum, and an historic landmark in Paris, France. It is the home of some of the best-known works of art, including the ''Mona Lisa'' and the ''Venus de Milo''. A central l ...

, and universities in New York, Hamburg, Leiden, Honolulu, and Stockholm. He donated to the libraries of the

Musée de l'Homme The Musée de l'Homme (French, "Museum of Mankind" or "Museum of Humanity") is an anthropology museum in Paris, France. It was established in 1937 by Paul Rivet for the 1937 '' Exposition Internationale des Arts et Techniques dans la Vie Modern ...

and the Institut national d'histoire de l'art, to which he gave the manuscript and journal of

Eugène Delacroix Ferdinand Victor Eugène Delacroix ( , ; 26 April 1798 – 13 August 1863) was a French Romantic artist regarded from the outset of his career as the leader of the French Romantic school.Noon, Patrick, et al., ''Crossing the Channel: British ...

. He also gave his Chinese-bronze collection to the

Musée Guimet The Guimet Museum (full name in french: Musée national des arts asiatiques-Guimet; MNAAG; ) is an art museum located at 6, place d'Iéna in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, France. Literally translated into English, its full name is the Nationa ...

and his

cloisonné Cloisonné () is an ancient technique for decorating metalwork objects with colored material held in place or separated by metal strips or wire, normally of gold. In recent centuries, vitreous enamel has been used, but inlays of cut gemstone ...

objects to the Musée des Arts Décoratifs (MAD).

Death

David-Weill died in

Neuilly-sur-Seine Neuilly-sur-Seine (; literally 'Neuilly on Seine'), also known simply as Neuilly, is a commune in the department of Hauts-de-Seine in France, just west of Paris. Immediately adjacent to the city, the area is composed of mostly select residentia ...

, Paris, on 7 July 1952. Parts of his collection were sold in a series of auctions in 1970.

Honors

P1110765 Paris XIV avenue David-Weill rwk

*David-Weill was elected to the

Académie des beaux-arts An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary education, secondary or tertiary education, tertiary higher education, higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membershi ...

in 1934. *Avenue David-Weill in the

14th arrondissement of Paris The 14th arrondissement of Paris ( ), officially named ''arrondissement de l'Observatoire'' (; meaning "arrondissement of the Observatory", after the Paris Observatory), is one of the 20 arrondissements of the capital city of France. It is situa ...

was named in his honor in 1960 in tribute to his involvement with the

Cité internationale universitaire de Paris Cité may refer to: Places * Cité (Paris Métro), the metro station on the ''Île de la Cité'' * Cité (Quebec), type of municipality in Quebec * Citadel, the historical centre of an old city, originally fortified * Housing estate, a group of ho ...

References

External links

*https://web.archive.org/web/20131030025533/http://www.genea-bdf.org/BasesDonnees/genealogies/weill.htm *http://www.frick.org/interact/video/fora/david-weill_family *http://www.ciup.fr/bio-saison-1/david-david-weill-43536/ *https://web.archive.org/web/20150210041800/http://lesassos.com/sn/article.php?article_id=499 *http://www1.alliancefr.com/culture/le-role-du-banquier-david-david-weill-dans-lart-5018242 {{DEFAULTSORT:David-Weill, David 1871 births American art collectors 1952 deaths People from San Francisco Jewish art collectors Jewish American bankers Subjects of Nazi art appropriations Lazard family