Göthilda Fürstenberg
Swedish, 1837 - 1901
Göthilda Fürstenberg was the only child of cousins Eduard Magnus and Rachel Magnus. Eduard Magnus was a wholesaler and became rich through sugar production and lending . He founded a bank in Gothenburg and through investments in textile production also made business contacts with the company L. Fürstenberg & Co, whose partner the son Pontus Fürstenberg would eventually become the daughter's husband. The Fürstenberg and Magnus families hung out, had financial connections, lived close to each other, and were members of the same faith community, the Mosaic Church.in Gothenburg. Through these contact points, Göthilda Fürstenberg met her future husband Pontus at a young age. When Pontus proposed to Göthilda Fürstenberg, she was in her twenties. However, Eduard and Rachel Magnus were opposed to the marriage and Eduard Magnus, who was his daughter's husband , said no. The reason must have been that Pontus was ten years older than their daughter, he was perceived as frivolous and in addition he had a humpback . Only when Göthilda Fürstenberg's parents died did marriage become possible and it was entered into in 1880. Pontus and Göthilda Fürstenberg had no children.
Despite the fact that Göthilda Fürstenberg's parents bequeathed funds for charity in Gothenburg and had financially benefited the city's music and art life, the legacy of the parents was very large. In addition to the family's property (now the Palace House ), Göthilda Fürstenberg inherited a capital of around SEK 3.5 million - a gigantic sum by the standards of the time. Göthilda Fürstenberg's upbringing included training in what a bourgeois girl of rank should master. Musicality and interest in art were given areas, but in her case, basic knowledge in financial management was also added. Göthilda Fürstenberg's inherited fortune was thus well placed to be wisely managed. Her husband Pontus was not as rich but also not poor. Together they were one of Gothenburg's richest couples.
Göthilda Fürstenberg's interest in art was founded early on through her parents' involvement in the city's cultural life and she was also related to Ernst Josephson , who represented the young radicals of the time in art. Ernst Josephson came to work as an artistic advisor to the couple Fürstenberg. In connection with the marriage, the Fürstenbergs began a full-time commitment as art collectors and benefactors of the city's artistic life. The company Gnistan , where Pontus Fürstenberg was a member of the exhibition committee, had an art exhibition in 1881. Through it, an important foundation was laid for the couple Fürstenberg's art collection. The exhibition also marked a breakthrough for naturalism in Scandinavian art.
Pontus Fürstenberg was formally involved in the city's public life, while Göthilda Fürstenberg is known to posterity mostly through her inherited capital. She is described as the "heiress". In practice, however, the Fürstenbergs acted jointly in most respects. They shared an interest in art and a commitment to artists. Together, they opened Gothenburg to foreign impulses in the arts. The Fürstenbergs went to Paris, Germany, Italy and Copenhagen. On their travels abroad, they studied and bought art that was exhibited to the public in their gallery on Södra Hamngatan 2, and the home was a meeting place for the radical artists of the time. The Fürstenbergs especially admired and favored the art of the so-called Opponents , whose critical point was directed at the conservativeThe Academy of Fine Arts . The University of Gothenburg's library contains a large collection of preserved letters from artists who would later become famous, for example Carl Larsson . The collections also contain letters that Göthilda Fürstenberg wrote to the many relatives in the Magnus and Fürstenberg families. In addition to working with art and cultural life in Gothenburg, Göthilda Fürstenberg also devoted herself to charity work in a foundation dedicated to the memory of her father.
The couple Fürstenberg's grave care at the Old Cemetery at Svingeln .
Göthilda Fürstenberg died on December 7, 1901 and just over four months later Pontus Fürstenberg died. They rest at the Mosaic cemetery on Friggagatan in Gothenburg.
The Fürstenbergs bequeathed the Fürstenberg house to the city of Gothenburg, which was also given the right to sell the property. The art collection was donated to the Gothenburg Museum , but was later moved to the Gothenburg Art Gallery at Götaplatsen, a museum whose creation was made possible through the sale of the Fürstenberg House. Funds were also donated to the Gothenburg Orchestra Association and to several charities.
On the ground floor of the Gothenburg Art Museum, where the couple Fürstenberg's art collection can be viewed today, there is also some furniture from Pontus and Göthilda Fürstenberg's home. Thus, the works of art are framed by the patrician environment they had also previously had.
https://sv.wikipedia.org/wiki/Göthilda_Fürstenberg; accessed 6/16/2021
Person TypeIndividual
Last Updated8/7/24
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Sweden, 1821 - 1901, Sweden
Hamburg, Germany, 1809 - 1847, Leipzig, Germany
Headingley, England, 1835 - 1913, Ashford, England
