Kurt Erdmann
| Kurt Erdmann | |
|---|---|
| Born |
9 September 1901 Hamburg, Germany |
| Died | 30 September 1964 (aged 63) Berlin, Germany |
| Nationality | German |
| Occupation | Art Historian, Head of Pergamon Museum 1958-1964 |
| Known for | Work on Oriental rugs |
Kurt Erdmann (9 September 1901, Hamburg - 30 September 1964, Berlin) was a German art historian who specialized in Sasanian and Islamic Art. He is best known for his scientific work on the history of the Oriental rug, which he established as a subspecialty within his scientific discipline. From 1958 to 1964, Erdmann served as the director of the Pergamon Museum, Berlin. He was one of the protagonists of the "Berlin school" of Islamic art history.
Erdmann started studying German literature in 1919, but soon developed a deeper interest in European art history. His PhD thesis in 1927, tutored by Erwin Panofsky, was about European architecture. He then went on to an apprenticeship at the State Museum in Berlin, where he was invited by Friedrich Sarre to join the work on his publication, together with Hermann Trenkwald, about ancient oriental carpets. Erdmann's scientific interest remained with oriental rugs throughout his entire career.
From 1958 until 1964, Erdmann was Head of the Museum of Islamic Art, Berlin, a department of the State Museums of Berlin, today the Pergamon Museum. He also worked as a professor at the universities of Berlin, Hamburg, Bonn, Cairo, and Istanbul (1951-1957). Erdmann was a member of the German Archaeological Institute. As Head of the Berlin Pergamon Museum, he was responsible for the reconstruction of the Berlin museum collections after World War II. The erection of the Berlin Wall further disrupted the collections of the museums of the divided city. Erdmann worked on the planning for the new Museum of Islamic Art, then in Dahlem, West Berlin, until his death.
Kurt Erdmann was the fourth in a succession of directors of the Museum of Islamic Art, now the Pergamon Museum, Berlin. Established by Wilhelm von Bode, whose work was continued by Friedrich Sarre and Ernst Kühnel, they were the protagonists of the "Berlin School" of the History of Islamic Art. This scientific school developed the "terminus ante quem" dating method, based on reproductions of Oriental carpets in Renaissance painting.
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