SwissArtGallery · Documented identity
The German painter Franz Pauly (1837–1913), identified as a landscape painter of the Düsseldorf School, drew his subjects from several regions of Europe. Born in Sankt Aldegund on the Moselle, he died in Düsseldorf, the city where a significant part of his training took place. He studied at the Düsseldorf Academy of Fine Arts from 1860 to 1863 under Hans Fredrik Gude and Oswald Achenbach, and more specifically attended the latter’s landscape class in 1862–1863.
His landscapes take the Rhine and the Moselle as their subjects, as well as Switzerland and Italy. The titles associated with his work provide some geographical reference points: Bachlauf im Wald, dated 1860 and located in Düsseldorf, Bootshaus und kleine Angler am Vierwaldstättersee (1862), Ansicht von Zeltingen-Rachtig, Alken an der Mosel and An der ligurischen Küste. A silk association banner, dated 1862–1863, also attests to work beyond landscape alone: it brings together a depiction of Saint Cecilia and a scene entitled Von Aldegund mit der Post nach Alf. An auction listing describes Die Treib am Vierwaldstättersee, dated 1863, as an oil on canvas measuring 59 × 75.5 cm, signed, dated and bearing the inscription “Düsseldorf” at the lower right.
In 1871, Pauly ended his career as a full-time painter and became a wine merchant in his native village. This choice reflects a family background connected with viticulture and the wine trade: his father, P. Philipp Pauly, was a vintner, wine merchant and innkeeper in Sankt Aldegund. Among his associates was Johann Velten, a painter from Graach an der Mosel and a former student of the Düsseldorf Academy, described as his fellow painter and friend.
This profile brings together identity references for Franz Pauly and paintings, drawings and works on paper documented in auction catalogues.
1 references are documented at Schuler. Each record links to its source; the amounts are not a general valuation of the artist’s work.
Oil on canvas
Die Treib am Vierwaldstättersee
Öl auf Leinwand
Catalogue period : 2021-09-17
Catalogue reference — sale not confirmed
Estimate : CHF 1200–1800
View the lot at the auction house ↗SwissArtGallery documentary note based on the cited sources. Titles, media and qualifications are provided in the profile language; the original catalogue wording remains available in each record.
Documentation updated : 2026-10-19
