Helene Hecht

Helene Hecht, who was educated and culturally engaged led together with Berta Hirsch (1850-1913),[4][5] founder of the first reading hall in Germany, the largest salon in the city of Mannheim.

In this salon, Hecht and Hirsch facilitated communication between artists, patrons and city dignitaries.

[7] Guests included the composer Johannes Brahms, who was a friend of Hecht's husband, and the painter Franz von Lenbach.

[14] Provenance research which includes the Hecht collection has been undertaken by departments of painting and sculpture at Kunsthalle Mannheim.

At the age of 86, Helene Hecht was picked up by the police on the night of 21–22 October 1940, to be deported to the French internment camp of Gurs.