Martin Flersheim

Martin Ludwig Flersheim (born April 18, 1856 in Frankfurt am Main; died December 7, 1935 ibid.) was a German businessman, entrepreneur, art collector, patron and patron of the Frankfurt art scene and served on the board of the Städelscher Museums-Verein for almost four decades. He donated works of art to his native city, which can still be seen in Frankfurt museums today.

Family

He was the first child of Louis Flersheim , a merchant and entrepreneur who had lived at Feuerbachstraße 47 (building not preserved) in Frankfurt's Westend since 1880, and his wife Gutha "Gitta" Johanna, née Fürth. The villa of the Louis Flersheim family stood in a free location opposite the palace of the Duke of Nassau. The Flersheim family had lived in Frankfurt am Main since the 17th century, initially in the Ostend (Judengasse) and later in the Westend. Martin had three younger siblings.

The 30-year-old Martin Flersheim married the 23-year-old American Florence Mary Livingston in Frankfurt am Main on January 23, 1887. The couple lived in Frankfurt's Westend at Mendelssohnstraße 78 (building not preserved). The marriage produced two sons, Herbert “Heriberto” Ludwig Sidney (born on November 4, 1887 in Frankfurt am Main; died on October 3, 1954 in Acassuso, Partido San Isidro, near Buenos Aires, Argentina) and Friedrich “Fritz” Georg (born on August 7, 1892 in Frankfurt am Main; died as Frederick G. Flersheim in April 1977 in New York City, New York, United States).

Works Martin Ludwig Flersheim (born 1862) was a German import/export merchant and entrepreneur, co-owner of the family business Flersheim-Hess from 1887, alongside his younger brother, Ernst Carl, from 1892. The company, originally based in Frankfurt's Töngesgasse 17I (building no longer preserved) and later at Mainzer Landstraße 191 (also no longer preserved), imported a variety of materials including ivory, fishbone, overseas wood, horn, mother-of-pearl, bamboo, and tortoiseshell from Africa, Asia, and South America. These materials were used in the production of items such as billiard balls, combs, brushes, cutlery handles, buttons, corset stays, tobacco pipes, and ornately decorated walking sticks. In addition to these finished products, Flersheim-Hess also traded in fashion accessories and hardware.

Martin Flersheim joined his father's business at the age of fifteen and played a key role in its development. By the time of World War I, Flersheim-Hess had achieved an annual turnover of 6 million marks. Flersheim was also listed in the Prussian millionaire's yearbook for his wealth.

Art collections

According to autobiographical statements by his brother Ernst Carl, Martin Flersheim, together with his wife Florence Mary, compiled a library of several thousand volumes and a collection of works of art by contemporary painters and sculptors of the 19th and early 20th centuries, starting after their marriage, which included works by Jacob Alberts, Ferdinand Barbedienne, Peter Becker,

Since 2000, some works from the holdings of German museums have been returned to their descendants as part of the restitution of looted art. The Flersheim heirs have registered 344 search requests for Nazi-looted object on the German Lost Art Foundation Database.

Memberships (selection)

Deutsche Gesellschaft zur Bekämpfung der Geschlechtskrankheiten Frankfurter Gesellschaft für Handel, Industrie und Wissenschaft – Casino-Gesellschaft von 1802 Frankfurter Kunstverein Freies Deutsches Hochstift Mitteldeutscher Kunstgewerbe-Verein Physikalischer Verein Senckenbergische Naturforschende Gesellschaft Städelscher Museums-Verein

Positions held

Verwaltungsratsmitglied des Frankfurter Kunstvereins (bis 1934) Vorstandsmitglied des Städelschen Museums-Vereins (seit 1899)

Literature