24 May,2009 11:42 AM IST | | Caters News/Rex Features
And no wonder. Flowers, cows, barns, streams and people almost out of sight on the canvas Adolf Hitler's artistic talent turned out to be as ordinary as his subject matter
A self-portrait of Adolf Hitler, thought to be his earliest, was the bestseller at the first-ever auction of his some of his artwork last month.
The watercolour painting was among 13 works that fetched up to u00a310,000 each, reaching a grand total of u00a395,000.
The self-portrait was created by the Nazi monster back in 1910, when the future Fuhrer was just 21 and, in keeping with most of the evil dictator's cannon of work, the picture of him is as amateurish as most of his art.
The small portrait of him has no nose or mouth, but the side parting hairstyle is unmistakable and experts are sure it is him because of the markings on the piece.
Hitler is shown sat on an old stone bridge, with the wicked warmonger identifying himself by daubing a cross and his initials A H above the figure.
All of the pictures had been kept under lock and key in storage since their liberation during World War Two.
But the paintings, which were created between 1908 and 1912, were brought out for the public to see before they went under the hammer (April 23) at Ludlow Racecourse.
Each of the pieces by the then struggling artist had been individually viewed and authenticated by the late Peter Jahn, a renowned expert on the Austrian period of Hitler's life.
The subject matter of the paintings offers no clue to the monster their artist would later become, instead featuring flowers and picturesque landscapes.
These pieces, along with other artefacts, were found by Company Sergeant Major Willie J McKenna, when he was stationed in Essen, Germany in 1945.
They were then sold direct to the present vendor, who has not revealed his identity, and were kept out of sight for decades.
Self portraits of Hitler that have survived the war are rare, a 1926 pencil sketch sold for u00a31,050 in 1999 in North Lincolnshire.
This latest piece is thought to be the earliest example of the dictator painting a picture of himself.
Mullocks' historical documents expert Richard Westwood-Brookes said he thought this artwork would stir up a lot of interest.
He said: "It's curious to say at the very least how an artist, whose interests at this stage of his life should be in such peaceful and bucolic subjects, could turn into the monster he became in later life.
"From an artistic point of view, one can see why Hitler didn't exactly make a success of his career as an artist.
"These are at best the standard of a reasonably competent amateur and some might consider them downright crude in execution.
"Saying that, there is a tremendous fascination in Hitler these days and this sale will provide bidders with a rare opportunity of obtaining a work by Hitler at a time long before he started his campaigns of mass murder and world domination."
These new pictures include watercolours of a cottage with a thatched roof, families relaxing by a river and country farmscapes.
A moodier painting is of black and white farmhouses, while others are colourful studies of bunches of flowers.
Hitler's struggles as an aspiring artist are well-documented, with his work criticised by many in the art world.
He was rejected twice by the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna in 1907 and 1908 after being told he was unfit for painting.
In Vienna he resorted to copying scenes from postcards and selling to merchants and tourists in an effort to raise funds for himself.
