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Welcome to the Online Museum of German Wall Figures!
These Vintage German Wall Figures or Fairy Tale Wood Plaques are a cornucopia of beauty and of history.
They are all made of wood. They are all from the 20th century. Many are hand-painted.
With this Online-Museum I want to create something beautiful. So, if you love vintage art, take a close look and enjoy, maybe remember, too.
Mission Statement: The era of German Wall Figures (1930s to 1970s) has almost been forgotten, even in Germany, where 99% of the Fairy Tale Wood Plaques were produced. I am working on preserving the beauty of this era on the World Wide Web.
Christiane Dietz
Hand-painted on 3mm quality plywood. This wood picture belongs to a Hellerkunst series of German traditional clothing.
A wonderful early Hellerkunst highlight which I didn't even know existed until recently! I often say "one of my all...
There is a newer version by Magda Heller's son, Ralf Heller. In that new version there is no base.
"Schlaf Kindlein, schlaf" is a German lullaby. This wood picture belongs to the lullaby-series by Mertens-Kunst.
Very unusual what with the witch's dark skin and colorful hat. Great work, look at the children's eyes! I don't...
It makes you think of Mother Holle, that's the first person who springs to mind. But it must be Mother...
These beautiful rain children were hanging in the old nursery of Dr.Reiner Muehlbach (born in 1935), together with a whole...
This is a large and wide wall figure! We have throne and a pillow, too. In the 1970s Heller produced...
In spite of the foreboding 1930s: Ilse Schneider's wall figures almost always came in bright colors, in good times and...
"This sailor girl is just great! And it's a girl for a change. And she's not melancholic but adventure seeking",...
The Frog King Princesses by Mertens-Kunst came with different crowns. Even this very old yellow princess was available with a...
A very rare wall figure and hard to give a title to. Hellerkunst stamped „Hoher Besuch“ on the back, translating...
This wall figure shows us how much the times have changed: Compare it to the Mertens 7 Ravens Sister in...
This is a square wood picture by Hellerkunst and on its back someone wrote (believe it or not) a shopping...
There are two single handed sailors by Hellerkunst: One with waves, one without. This is the younger version with the...
Every time had their very own Hansel and Gretel faces. Even before the beginning of the Second World War the...
Look at the princess’s short jacket: The long sleeves with the yellow silk lining, then the earrings and the thread...
This picture is such a treasure: You can see Johanna Witkop and her father, Josef Witkop. She was the founder...
A typical question about wall figures is: "What do you do with them?" Well, it’s in the name, you just...
A date on the back of a antique wall figure is very valuable - it helps to tell when a...
I don't know anything about the producer of this Mecki, too bad, because it is fantastic work! Look at the...
This is a great work by Handi. I have only known very simple designs of this producer so far. What...
This is a beautiful Mother Holle, just look at the details: The shadows on the frilly bonnet, the red duvet...
A very early fretwork template by Graubele, later called Graupner. There were two fretwork pieces that had to be put...
A very rare motive belonging to a hardly known fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm. It is one of the...
Fly agaric mushrooms are very popular, and this one is breathtaking! The mushroom is smiling and he is 50% of...
Hand-painted on wood with varnish and rare. I am not absolutely sure it is Ravi-Kunst. Here the 4 that make...
This is an unusual Mertens-Kunst item. The colors are very bright and thick and with a very shiny varnish. Plus...
Hand-painted on wood with varnish. Very beautiful and very rare. The tender protectiveness of the dwarf and the cold snow...
Platsch means splash, so his English name could be Pittisplash. He was a TV character in the then GDR and...
This little dwarf was really produced by Mertens-Kunst. At the end of the 1960s Original Bergischer Engel had been sold...
All the 1950s products of Original Bergischer Engel were hand-painted. First it were little angels, later on wall figures and...
Hand-painted on wood, no varnish. This wall figure belongs to a collection, around 10 different motives by the same producer....
Look at this beautiful arrangement! It is a Mother Holle by Graupner/Graubele and a Wrangell-Star Money Girl. The snow and...
An unusually early and elaborate wall figure. Look at the details and the shadows! Hand-painted on wood with varnish, very...
The grey spotted areas had to be removed, that was the early technique of fretwork templates. This motive was running...
This is one of the very first screen prints that Hellerkunst did. You can't see it here, but if you...
The thistle bird with a thistle - this design belongs to a series about birds. Their (German) names are depicted...
Do you happen to know the manufacturer‘s name? It is undecipherable. It is high quality though, look at the details:...
Beautiful early Mertens, still Art Deco style, so simple yet effective with two shades of yellow and the two shades...
A beautiful and rare color scheme for the Seven Ravens by Mertens. Screen Print with added hand-painting, very rare.
Very rare, very enchanting. Hand-painted on wood and a wonderfully done copy, too. I had looked for it for years...
Ravi-Kunst is always hand-painted, but this one is so perfect it seems to have been a special order. His history:...
There ist an almost identical Mertens Mother Holle with blue head scarf, but I like this one more. Early Screen...
At first glance it seems to be a blue diamond, shining and making the dwarf so happy, but it's a...
There is also a Hellerkunst Sunflower Mother in orange, both are beautiful. Hand-painted on wood and rare, a real museum...
Hand-painted on wood and very rare. It is a very unusual style I have not come across so far. Look...
Very rare, the artist herself, Johanna Gruner Witkop gave it to me for the Online Museum. Hand-painted on wood end...
All Mother Holles have a pillow, but only this one has the feathers, too. Mrs Gruner-Witkop, the artist of Original...
Hand-painted on wood thick thick colors and varnis. It is rather rare and very solid work, too. I have never...
There are only few fairy tale motives by Kleur en Profiel. The Dutch artist Jan Snelten had his very own...
Hand-painted with tempera paint and varnish. Very rare, I have only seen it in Mrs Gruner Witkop's archive so far....
Sceen printed Hellerkunst, with plastic links. A friendly and beautiful color scheme. The earlier Hellerkunst jumping jacks I know of...
This is one of Ravi's early wall figures. Enter "1960s Ravi-Kunst" in the search (top right) and you can compare...
One of the very endearing children motives by Magda Heller. It is very rare and with intricate fretwork details. Hellerkunst...
A very unique wall figure, the torn out mushroom along with its root. Hand-painted on wood, with varnish, definitly a...
Hand-painted on wood, with varnish. It is a beautiful wall figure with a harmonious color scheme, but I don't know...
This is very old Mertens, hand-painted on wood. It is not too rare though, it seems to have been a...
Hand-painted on wood with varnish. Enchanting in its simplicity and beauty.
Hand-painted on wood, a wonderful piece of work, one of my favorites. Look at the color scheme, too!
Hand-painted on wood with varnish and so beautiful. Look at the color scheme, the delicate face and the cute shoes....
During war years the material got scarce. Many Mertens-Kunst wall figures are missing the lacquering layer. That's why they are...
Very rare and very beautiful, reflecting the spirit of the time. Look at the base: Most Mertens wall figures had...
Hand-painted on wood with varnish, very endearing and very rare. It belongs to the four seasons series by Ravi-Kunst.
Hand-painted on wood and very rare. A very unusual motive, Snow White's evil stepmother with the mirror!
A haptic joy, like all Hilla wall figures: Hand-painted on wood, thick layers of paint and varnish. This rat catcher...
Most producers of wall figures had problems getting high quality material during the 2nd World War. All quality material was...
Hand-painted on wood with varnish. There is a typical color scheme for most of the Hellerkunst music dwarfs: A basic...
The fine face features, the hair style, the yellow bodice with the wide dot dress - this is one of...
This motive speaks of tenderness and lightness and freedom. It is hand-painted on wood with varnish and very rare.
This Wall Figure is one of the very first by Mrs Gruner-Witkop shortly after the war. The wood that was...
Count the eyes! No joke, that really makes a big difference in German Wall Figures. Most are depicted in profile...
There is a second early Mertens Snow White in yellow and green with two tiny differences: Snow White is wearing...
Which is the most beautiful of them all? Sometimes I don't know which of the early Art Deco Mertens-Kunst Wall...
Hand-painted on wood with no or very matte varnish. The checked two colored base is rather unusual for a German...
Hand-painted on wood and rare. Look at the fine features, it is high quality work. I have only known this...
Hand-painted on wood, no varnish. That could be a clue for its being a scarce material war time product (Second...
One of the Hellerkunst fairies, in this case a tiny bee sized fairy. Early screen print and rather rare.
Hand-painted on wood with lots of varnish - and thick colors, too. That was typical for products right after World...
Mrs Gruner-Witkop was the sole artist of Original Bergischer Engel. She painted this sample in 1959 but it was never...
Early sceen print with added hand-painting. There are only a few designs of Rapunzel as German Wall Figure, this is...
I tried to capture the wonderful haprics of this wall figure. The wood, the thick paint layer and shining varnsih......
A beautiful color scheme, the endearing motive and the movement of the scene - this wall figure is perfect in...
One of the white Puss in Boots by Mertens and so beautiful: Look at the color scheme! Look at the...
Hand-painted on wood with varnish. It is an early version of separate Hellerkunst dirndl children and rare. Look at the...
Someone must have been protecting this wall figure all these years. I only know of this one item so far...
Hand-painted on wood an very rare. The early Mertens-Kunst faces were indeed more earnest, which you can see on this...
Hand-painted on wood and rare. On the back it says: "Zaansch Zaandijk, Handschilder-Atelier, handgemalt". I have known of six motives...
Very rare, hand-painted on wood, thick colors with varnish. Great color scheme with red, yellow and three shades of green....
Hand-painted on wood with varnish. It is most likely a copy of the original Hellerkunst Fairy on a Leaf. Only...
Hand-painted on wood and very rare. I have only known of two Wooden Wall Figures depicting balloons, this is one...
Very rare and beautiful. That is especially because of the candle light. There are only very few wall figures showing...
Hellerkunst was founded in 1927 by Magda and Georg Heller. They became famous for their lovely Wooden Fairy Tale Wall...
The founder of Mertens-Kunst was Alfred Mertens, born in 1898. Later on, his children took over. Alfred Mertens' son led...
Here you find among others: Ore Mountains and GDR, Original Bergischer Engel, Grossmann and Munchner Kunst und Handwerk.
Ravi-Kunst was a 1940ies to 1960ies manufacturer of Wooden Fairy Tale Wall Figures located in Hamburg, in the north of...
Hobby-Art / at home craft applies to the thousands of boys and girls and sometimes their parents, too, who produced...
