The Arrest of an Art Forger

Summary

History Daily: The Arrest of an Art Forger

Hosted by Lindsey Graham | Released on May 29, 2025

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Introduction

On this episode of History Daily, host Lindsey Graham delves into the intriguing and tumultuous life of Han von Majoren, a talented artist whose ambition led him down the precarious path of art forgery. The story intertwines personal struggles, artistic fervor, and the dark shadows of World War II, culminating in Han's arrest and ultimate downfall.

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Early Life and Artistic Aspirations

Han von Majoren's journey begins in 1907 in Deventer, the Netherlands. From a young age, Han was passionate about art, dedicating every spare moment to drawing and painting. However, his father, a schoolteacher, disapproved of his artistic pursuits, insisting that Han pursue a more "respectable" profession. This familial tension is poignantly captured when young Han is forced to write repetitive lines as punishment:

"I know nothing. I am nothing. I am capable of nothing." ([03:30])

Undeterred by his father's disapproval, Han sets out to study architecture at the Delft University of Technology. His breakthrough comes in 1913 when one of his paintings wins first prize in a competition, igniting his confidence to abandon architecture for art school. This pivotal decision, however, strains his relationship with his father and introduces financial pressures as Han struggles to gain recognition.

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Rise to Success and Personal Turmoil

Despite his dedication, Han's art initially fails to garner significant attention. Galleries reject his work, and sales are meager, pushing him into depression. To make ends meet, he resorts to commercial art and takes a part-time job as a teaching assistant at the Royal Academy of Art. These endeavors, rather than alleviating his despair, exacerbate his feelings of inadequacy.

Han's turning point comes through the unwavering support of his wife, Johanna, who organizes his first solo exhibition in 1917. The event is a resounding success, selling all displayed works within four weeks and establishing Han as an in-demand artist. However, newfound fame brings personal complications as Han embarks on an affair with Johanna's friend, Johanna Ullermans, a renowned Dutch actress. This betrayal not only devastates his wife but also creates professional enemies, particularly among influential art critics.

"This betrayal is devastating for Han's wife. But she's not the only one hurt by this new relationship." ([07:00])

The affair and subsequent backlash culminate in Han's second solo exhibition in 1922, which disastrously fails. Harsh criticism from art experts undermines his reputation, leading to his divorce in March 1923. Grappling with depression and anger, Han vows revenge against those who dismissed his artistic vision.

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Descent into Forgery

Determined to reclaim his status, Han shifts his focus to art forgery, targeting the masterpieces of renowned artists like Johannes Vermeer. Over six years, he meticulously develops techniques to age his paintings convincingly. This process involves using genuine 17th-century canvases, replicating old paint formulas, and employing chemical treatments to simulate age-related wear.

In 1937, Han's method proves successful when his latest forgery, Jesus among the Doctors, is authenticated by Dr. Abraham Bredius, a prominent Dutch art historian. The painting is lauded as a "new Vermeer," enabling Han to sell it for over $5 million—a stark contrast to the rejection he previously faced.

"Han can't tell anyone the truth, of course, but he thrills in the idea that he's outwitted the critics." ([07:30])

This success emboldens Han to produce more forgeries, which he sells to unsuspecting collectors, including high-ranking Nazis like Hermann Goering. His lucrative scheme thrives even during the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands, allowing Han to amass significant wealth.

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The Arrest and Legal Battle

The downfall begins when one of Han's forgeries, Christ with the Adulteress, is seized by Allied soldiers after the collapse of Hitler's regime. Tracing the painting back to Han, authorities arrest him on May 29, 1945, charging him with aiding and abetting the Nazis. Facing the death penalty, Han is confronted with the dilemma of either maintaining his innocence or confessing to his forgery.

Han's confession is met with skepticism by art experts, who refuse to believe that he could have replicated Vermeer's intricate style. In a desperate bid to prove his innocence, Han proposes to create a genuine Vermeer under court supervision. This unprecedented move successfully saves his life, as the newly created painting closely matches his previous forgeries in authenticity.

"His newest forgery has saved Han's life, and he is cleared of charges of collaborating with the Nazis." ([16:31])

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Conclusion and Legacy

Though Han avoids execution, he still faces charges of forgery and fraud. In 1947, he is convicted and sentenced to a year in prison. However, Han never serves his sentence, succumbing to a heart attack shortly after his conviction. By the time of his death at age 58, Han von Majoren is remembered not merely as a criminal but as a folk hero who outsmarted the Nazis.

His legacy is a complex tapestry of artistic genius, personal tragedy, and moral ambiguity. Han's forgeries, while financially successful, ultimately define his life's narrative, highlighting the fine line between admiration and deceit in the art world.

"Though today his forgeries may seem crude to modern sensibilities, Han made himself a fortune by skillfully exploiting the art world's greatest eagerness to unearth lost old masters." ([16:31])

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Final Thoughts

Han von Majoren's story serves as a poignant reminder of the lengths to which passion and desperation can drive an individual. It also underscores the fragile nature of reputation and the enduring impact of one's actions on history.

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Credits

Written and Researched by Joe Godley | Edited by Scott Reeves | Managing Producer: Emily Burke | Executive Producers: William Simpson (Airship) and Pascal Hughes (Noiser)

Audio Editing by Mohammed Shazi | Sound Design by Gabriel Gould | Supervising Sound Designer: Matthew Filler | Music by Throwing

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Next Episode Preview: On May 30, 1431, explore the tragic execution of Joan of Arc, delving into the historical and cultural ramifications of her martyrdom.

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Transcript

[Lindsey Graham]

There are more ways than ever to listen to History Daily ad free. Listen with Wondry plus in the Wondery app as a member of Noiser plus at noiser.com or in Apple Podcasts. Or you can get all of History Daily plus other fantastic history [e-mail] It's May 29, 1945. In a large house in Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands, 55 year old artist Han von Majoren closes his eyes and lets the water cascade over his head. He's trying to wash away the throbbing pain in his temples. Last night Han drank far too much and this morning he's paying the price. Han groans as the pounding in his head is replaced by a banging on his front door. He climbs out of the shower and puts on a robe. Han moves to the hallway and clutches the oak banister as his wife Johanna unlocks the door. But as soon as she's turned the key, the door flies open and four uniformed police officers barge past her and into the foyer. Han races down the stairs to protest as an officer snaps handcuffs on his wife's wrists. But as Han reaches the bottom step, another officer grabs his shoulder and presses him against the wall. Through an open doorway, Han can see into his art studio and there the other two officers are already rifling through Han's belongings. They examine an almost finished painting on an easel and then carefully remove the artwork hanging on the walls. Spotting Hahn watching on, the senior officer steps out of the studio and then tells Han that he's under arrest for aiding and abetting the recently defeated Nazis and if he's found guilty, the penalty could be death. Han von Mezerin will soon discover the reason he's been detained on such a serious charge. According to investigators, he's allowed a painting by famous Dutch artist Johannes Vermeer to fall into Nazi hands. But the charge leaves Hahn in a quandary because to defend himself, Hahn will have to reveal a closely guarded secret that the paintings he sold for vast profits are not real Vermeers, but elaborate forgeries he made himself years before his arrest on May 29, 1945.

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[Lindsey Graham]

From Noiser and Airship I'm Lindsey Graham and this is History Daily. History is made every day on this podcast. Every day, we tell the true stories of the people and events that shaped our world. Today is May 29, 1945 the arrest of an art forger It's 1907 in Deventer, the Netherlands, 38 years before the arrest of Han von Meesjerun. 18 year old Han hunches over a writing desk in his bedroom, scribbling line after identical line that reads I know nothing. I am nothing. I am capable of nothing. By the time he reaches the bottom of the page, his hand is cramping from the repetition, but he grips the pen even harder, imagining it's actually his father's neck. For as long as he can remember, Han has dreamed of being an artist. He has spent every spare minute he can find drawing and painting. But Han's ambition doesn't meet with the approval of his schoolteacher father, who wants Han to learn a profession instead. So to put Han off art, his father belittles him and makes him write lines as though Han was one of his misbehaving students. But Han knows he doesn't have to put up with his father's cruel punishments much longer. A few weeks later, Han sets out on a hundred mile journey to the Delft University of Technology. His father has arranged for him to study architecture there. But once Han is away from his father, he's free to embrace his love of art, and in 1913, one of his paintings wins first prize in a competition, giving him the confidence to quit architecture and enroll in art school instead. His father is furious when he finds out that Han has abandoned his more respectable studies. And he's not the only one who's concerned about Han's career choice. By now, Han is married to one of his classmates and they have a baby boy together. His wife is worried about how they'll make ends meet. But Han is not. Because he is convinced that he will become a great artist. But the world is slow to recognize his genius. Galleries turn him down and buyers are only willing to pay a pittance for his work. In response, Han veers between arrogant dismissal of the collectors he sees as philistines and deep despair at their rejection of him. To earn money, Han draws holiday cards and paints landscape posters for the commercial art industry. And he gets a part time job as a teaching assistant at the Royal Academy of Art. But these only reinforce his feelings of inadequacy and he sinks into depression. At this point, Han almost abandons his dream of becoming an artist. But his wife doesn't give up. She urges Han to return to his easel and sets about organizing an exhibition of his work. She scrapes together enough money to hire a venue and invites every art critic, gallery owner and collector she can. In April 1917, Hahn's first ever solo exhibition opens at a gallery in the Hague. His work isn't modern. In fact, his paintings of churches and still lifes could have been made centuries earlier. But the exhibition is still a runaway success. Hahn sells three paintings on the very first day. And by the end of the four week show, he's found a buyer for every single work on display. Thanks to his wife. Suddenly, Han is an artist in demand. Commissions flood in with wealthy people asking Han to paint their portrait. Among his new clients is a famous Dutch actress named Johanna Ullermans. It's a job that changes Hans life. He soon starts an affair with Johann and makes little attempt to hide it. This betrayal is devastating for Hans wife. But she's not the only one hurt by this new relationship. Johanna is married as well. And her husband is one of the Netherlands foremost art critics. Friends try to warn Han that humiliating someone so influential in the world of art is a bad move for his career. But Han doesn't listen. He's too infatuated with Johanna to break off the affair. And he thinks a great artist like himself shouldn't be hemmed in by the normal rules and expectations of mainstream society. But he soon discovers that he has made a powerful enemy. In 1922, Hahn arranges a second solo exhibition of his work. But this time the show is a failure. His paintings are trashed by the critics who dismiss them as old fashioned and uninspired. One especially scathing review calls Han a gifted technician who has every virtue except originality. Following this setback, Han descends into another bout of depression. And it's all too much for his suffering wife. She's supported him for years, but now has had enough of his affairs, his mood swings, his arrogance, and his victimhood. In March 1923, they divorce. Han will wallow in his misery for months. He'll practically stop painting entirely and blame everyone but himself for his problems. But eventually that misery will turn into anger and a desire to get revenge. He'll become determined to show them all. And if they think he's nothing more than an imitator, then he'll become the best imitator that ever lived and show his critics just how little they really know about true art.

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[Lindsey Graham]

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Desiree was gone. And there was one person who knew the answer. I am a spiritual person, a magical person.

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[Lindsey Graham]

Lamont Jones's world is shattered when his cousin dies in custody just weeks after entering prison. The official report says natural causes, but bruises and missing teeth tell a different story. From Wondery comes Death County Pa. A chilling true story of corruption and and cover ups that begins as one man search for answers but soon reveals a disturbing pattern. Lamont's cousin's death is just one of many and powerful forces are working to keep the truth buried. With never before heard interviews and shocking revelations, Death County Pa. Pulls back the curtain on one of America's darkest institutional secrets. This isn't just another true crime story. It's happening right now. Follow Death County PA on the Wondery app or wherever you get your podcasts. You can binge all episodes of Death County Penns early and ad free right now by joining Wondery. It's 1937 in a village on the south coast of France, 16 years after Han von Meydren's disastrous second exhibition. In a busy cafe, 46 year old Han anxiously taps his foot on the tiled floor. His coffee has turned cold and his breakfast is untouched Instead, his attention is focused on the door as he waits for his wife to arrive. Following his divorce, Han eventually married his lover, Johanna Erlamans. In the early 1930s, the couple moved to the south of France, where Hahn set up a new studio. But instead of trying to create original works, he focused his efforts on becoming a master forger. According to his critics, he already painted in the style of old artists like Johannes Vermeer. So Hahn figured if he could find a way to age his paintings convincingly, he could pass them off as newly discovered works of famous artists and make a fortune. After much experimentation, he settled on what he thought was a foolproof method. He bought genuine 17th century canvases as his base. Then he mixed up paint using old formulas and used badger hair brushes, just like Vermeer, to apply them to the canvas. The result, though, still looked too new. So Han used a chemical process to harden the paints and then baked the forgeries in an oven. Finally, he rolled a heavy cylinder over the canvas to introduce authentic looking cracks and brushed India ink over the top to mimic three centuries worth of accumulated dust and dirt. So after almost six years of perfecting his technique, Hahn felt ready to create a new Vermeer masterpiece. The Supper at Emmaus depicted the resurrected Jesus Christ breaking bread with his disciples. When it was finished, Hahn used an intermediary to send the painting off to the prominent Dutch art historian Dr. Abraham Bredius for authentication. And now, in this cafe, he's just waiting on the verdict. Hans head snaps around as the cafe door opens and his wife Johanna walks in clutching the newest issue of a monthly art magazine. Han quickly grabs it out of her hands and flips through the magazine's pages to an article by Dr. Bredius. Reading a few paragraphs, Han then punches the air in delight. Bredius writes that he has discovered a new Vermeer, and not only that, the Supper at Emmaus is one of the Dutch master's best works. The article captures the attention of the entire art world, and Han is quick to take advantage. He puts the forgery on the market and sells it for the modern equivalent of over $5 million. Han is delighted, and not just by the money. The Supper at Emmaus is being praised by the same people who mocked and dismissed the work Han did under his own name. Han can't tell anyone the truth, of course, but he thrills in the idea that he's outwitted the critics. Over the next few years, Han will repeat this trick again and again. He creates more fake Vermeers and other forgeries that hoodwink the experts and sell for enormous sums. Even the outbreak of World War II in September 1939 doesn't stop him. And Hahn's huge fortune enables him to live a life of luxury in excess, even in wartime. But although business is booming when the Nazis occupy the Netherlands in 1940, the seeds are sown for the end of Hahn's fraudulent scheme. Unbeknownst to him, one of Hans forgeries catches the eye of a high ranking Nazi and ardent art collector. Hermann Goering trades 137 stolen Dutch paintings for just one of Hans forgeries called the Christ with the adulteress. But Goering doesn't get to enjoy it for long. When Adolf Hitler's regime collapses, Allied soldiers discover a Christ with the adulteress among thousands of paintings and other looted valuables stashed by the Nazis in a disused salt mine. Investigators traced Christ with the adulteress back to the person who supposedly discovered it a few years earlier. And they incorrectly assume that Hahn is the dealer who sold it to Goering. In May 1945, Hahn is arrested and charged with aiding and abetting the Nazi occupation by selling them an important piece of Dutch history. Hahn faces the death penalty, but there's one way to defeat the charges. If he admits to forging the painting. It isn't an easy thing to confess to though. And for several weeks Han agonizes over what to do. Finally though, he comes clean and explains to the shocked investigators how he painted the fake Vermeers and how he fooled the art world into believing that they were the real things. But proving that he's a forger is unexpectedly difficult to protect their reputations, the art experts who authenticated the paintings double down on their assessment, claiming that Han's so called confession is just a ruse to escape the executioner's noose. So Han will propose an unusual way to prove his innocence. He will offer to create a new Vermeer under the supervision of the court. Painting has always given Han his livelihood. Now it might save his life.

[Meisha Brown]

Every big moment starts with a big dream. But what happens when that big dream turns out to be a big flop? From Wondery and Ill Media, I'm Meisha Brown and this is the Big Flop. Every week, comedians join me to chronicle the biggest flubs, fails and blunders of all time. Like Quibi.

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[Lindsey Graham]

Wondery.Com/It'S December 1945 at Han Van Majoren's home in Amsterdam, three months after Hahn was arrested by Dutch police. In his light filled studio, Hahn puts the finishing touches on his latest Vermeer masterpiece. He calls it Jesus among the doctors. The court appointed witnesses who have watched his progress over the last few months can see that the style of painting is undeniably similar to the earlier Supper at Emmaus. But that's still not enough. To prove that Han is innocent, Hahn must also reveal the techniques he used to age his paintings. And once they are complete, the judge orders a comparison of Han's latest forgery with a painting bought by Hermann Goering. And only then do the art experts grudgingly agree that under the microscope, the two paintings appear almost identical. His newest forgery has saved Hahn's life, and he is cleared of charges of collaborating with with the Nazis. But he's not off the hook entirely. He still has to pay for his criminal scheme, and in late 1947 he's put on trial for forgery and fraud. He's quickly found guilty and sentenced to a year in prison, but he'll never serve even that. A few weeks after his conviction, Han suffers a heart attack and dies in the hospital at the age of 58. And by this time, media coverage of his trial has made him a household name in the Netherlands. Many people think of Han von Mesrin not as a criminal but as a folk hero who defrauded the Nazis. So hundreds attend his funeral. During his lifetime, Hahn always harbored ambitions of becoming a great artist in his own right. But it was only by assuming the name of a real genius that he found success. Though today his forgeries may seem crude to modernize, Hahn made himself a fortune by skillfully exploiting the art world's greatest eagerness to unearth lost old masters. And his elaborate fakes might have hung undiscovered on gallery walls for many decades to come, were it not for Hermann Goering's greed and Han von Mezurin's wrongful arrest on May 29, 1945. Next on History Daily, May 30, 1431, English soldiers execute the teenage French military leader Joan of Arc by burning her at the stake. From Noiser and Airship, this is history Daily hosted, edited and executive produced by me, Lindsey Graham. Audio editing by Mohammed Shazi. Sound design by Gabriel Gould. Supervising sound designer is Matthew Filler. Music by Throwing. This episode is written and researched by Joe Godley. Edited by Scott Reeves. Managing producer, Emily Burke. Executive producers are William Simpson for Airship and Pascal Hughes for Noiser.