Hiding in Plain Sight
The war continued to rage on, and S.S. Officer Gerbing was stationed in Paris for a long time. His wife didn’t want to miss the opportunity to live in a city like Paris, so they would only stay in the Alps when they just so happened to be visiting Vienna in the spring and summer months. Elsa would peek out the windows to see delivery trucks showing up, giving the S.S. Officer’s wife, Mrs. Gerbing, elaborate gifts that they brought from all over the world. She also saw Jewish prisoners wearing yellow stars doing the gardening and housework downstairs.
Every day, Elsa would keep herself busy by taking care of the household chores for Sylvia while she was home alone. If anyone knocked on the door, they did not have any cleverly hidden passageways to slide into. Instead, they had a sewing mannequin sitting in the corner of the room with a long, heavy coat that reach down to the floor. Elsa was able to hide behind the mannequin undetected, and guests would assume that the coat was there because it needed to be tailored.
In 1944, Mrs. Gerbing got a letter in the mail letting her know that her husband had been killed, and that the war may end soon. She knew that the Nazi reign would come crashing down, and she had just enough time to flee Austria with her children. For a brief amount of time, Elsa had her house back. She could walk to the downstairs apartment to see all of the fancy things that the Nazis had brought to her house. But that didn’t last long. In 1945, the Russians invaded and took everything in the house, claiming that they were taking back things that the Nazis stole. However, they took everything- including Elsa and Sylvia’s stuff too. They didn’t even leave the candles and matches for them to see at night.
But, at the very least, the war was over, and Elsa was home. She moved to Switzerland to live with her daughter, and let Sylvia continue living in the house in Vienna. After all, the house no longer felt like home, and it had too many bad memories for her. She was able to write letters about her life story, mostly for the benefit of her kids.
The Egon Schiele painting was sold to various collectors, and eventually ended up going to auction. When the story of Elsa Koditschek emerged, and everyone knew that this painting had been taken from her during World War II, Sotheby’s Auction arranged to make sure a huge portion to the sales price went to Elsa Koditschek’s great-grandchildren. It had only been estimated to be worth $15 million, but after hearing the story of the journey it went through, the painting sold for over $25 million at auction in 2018.
Where Do We Get This Stuff? Here are our Sources:
New York Times – The Nazi Downstairs: A Jewish Woman’s Tale of Hiding in Her Home
Forward – A Nazi Commandeered Her House. She Survived the Holocaust by Hiding In It Anyway.
AISH – Hiding from the Nazi Downstairs
The Independent – How A Jewish Woman Survived the Second World War by Hiding Above a Nazi Officer
Encyclopedia Britannica – Egon Schiele
Tate – Five Things to Know: Egon Schiele
Art Law & More – Sotheby’s to Sell Schiele Painting Forcibly Sold During Ww2
DER Standard – Why the Auction of This Painting By Egon Schiele Is A Sensation