Paul Prött I: Frankfurt, an der Hauptwache

Paul Prött

(1880 - 1945) 

Painter and graphic artist.

An der Hauptwache in Frankfurt 

Finding a nice etching of an unknown location is always a treat and a sport. Besides investigating I like printmakers who "stuff and stage" their compositions with figures and "of the period" means of transportation. Today part 1 of works  by forgotten printmaker Paul Prött. Very little is known or to be found about him, I think he lived and worked in Cologne, all further information is welcomed. As far as I know he's not mentioned in any of the Indexes or Artists Lexicons.  

Until yesterday I had not figured where this "Grand Central Place" (it must be because of the junction of double tramways seen in the etching) was but this time it happened to be close too home. That is: Wolfgangs home.

See the signs at the tram stop to the Zoo and Botanical gardens
on either side of the Altstadt.  

It shows An der Hauptwache in Frankfurt in better times and the reason I could not figure it out myself is because the whole place (Platz, square) with all its grand buildings was destroyed by an allied bombing raid march 22nd 1944. Like Berlin, Dresden, Hamburg, Bremen and so many other old cities (Rotterdam, Coventry, Groningen) the heart was ripped out. 

This particular Frankfurt square, like most of the old city was not restored to its former glory (see before posting: Römerberg in the "Altstadt") but the central buildings, the Hauptwache and the Katharinenkirche were. Trams nowadays go underground and the tarmac and intense traffic from the 1970's are obviously redirected.

The German grandmaster of this genre, "densely populated city views", must be of course Paul Peaschke (1875-1943): very prolific, very collectable, very sought after and thus: never cheap. Paul Prött's work on the other hand is very affordable and his prints of Cologne, Bonn, Frankfurt and the Rhine showing up regularly in German Ebay, flee markets, car boots and charity shops. 

Berlin Potsdamerplatz: 1919 traffic jam ?

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All pictures borrowed freely from the Internet for friendly, educational and non commercial use only.