I MUST MAKE A FEW CLARIFICATIONS BEFORE I BEGIN MY COMMENTARY ON THIS FASCINATING AND ELEGANT FIREPLACE:
(A) IT BELONGED TO MR. GERHARD RICHARD GUMPERT, A MAN WHO (AS YOU WILL READ BELOW) HAD A HISTORY OF INCREDIBLE HUMANITY AND GREATNESS;
B) IN WRITING THE COMMENTARY ON THE FIREPLACE I WILL NOT BE ABLE (I ALREADY KNOW THIS, I FEEL IT, AND SO I CONFESS IT AT ONCE TO THOSE WHO READ ME) NOT TO BE INFLUENCED BY THE MAN WHO FOR SO MANY YEARS WAS CLOSE TO IT, ENJOYING ITS PHYSICAL AND AESTHETIC WARMTH IN HIS MOMENTS OF MEDITATION.
C) THE PRICE TO WHICH I OFFER THIS ANCIENT AND VERY NOBLE SCULPTURE DOES NOT TAKE INTO ACCOUNT THE HISTORICAL VALUE OF ITS OWNERSHIP, BUT ONLY ITS AGE, ITS STYLE AND THE PRECIOUSNESS OF THE MARBLES WITH WHICH IT WAS CARVED. YOU WILL FIND REGENCY FIREPLACES OF THE SAME ERA ON THE MARKET AT MUCH HIGHER PRICES, TRY TO BELIEVE.
There was war, the most terrible and cruel war ever experienced by mankind, and our Richard was secretary to the German ambassador to the Vatican. In that capacity, in the year 1943 in particular, ours worked to save several civilians from Kappler's repressions (Ref. Robert Katz. “Roma Città Aperta” Il Saggiatore editions).
The war itself was, growing bitter, drawing to a close when (year 1944) this Lord managed, through mediation between the Eighth Allied Army and General Kesserling, to prevent San Marino from being bombed, thus saving, literally, the Republic.
He was in love with Italy, our Gumpert.
So much in love that he stayed there, in Italy and more properly in the city of Bologna, and in the immediate postwar period began (first of all) to import the mythical Beetle...
From there to the creation of Autogerma, sole importer of Volkswagen, Audi and Porsche, it was a flash...
The first headquarters of his Autogerma was Bologna, a city in which he remained until 1974 and then moved to Verona. The heirs sold this historic company to Volkswagen (now, indeed, Volkswagen Group, 5 billion in sales, one of the most important companies in Italy).
We can therefore say that this intelligent, skillful and, above all, generous Man, was the Italian Schindler and also an industrialist of great stuff, other than our modern “brave captains”!!!
HERE, THIS MANTEL IS NOT ONLY A MANTEL IN CARRARA STATUARY MARBLE WITH INCRUSTATIONS OF BRECHE VIOLET AND ALPS GREEN MARBLE (OBVIOUSLY OF ANCIENT QUARRY), CARVED IN THE FIRST HALF OF THE NINETEENTH CENTURY, BUT IT IS ALSO THE STORY, SO INCREDIBLE AS TO APPEAR FANTASTIC, OF ITS MASTER, A MAN WHOSE MOLD HAS BEEN LOST!
PROVENANCE “VILLA PIA,” VIA DI MONTE ALBANO N° 26, BOLOGNA.
