Heinrich Brunn

Who was Heinrich Brunn?

Heinrich Brunn was a German archaeologist. He was known for taking a scientific approach in his investigations of classical Greek and Roman art

Brunn studied archaeology and philology at the University of Bonn, where he was influenced by the teachings of Friedrich Gottlieb Welcker and Friedrich Ritschl. In 1843 he received his doctorate degree with the work Artificum liberae Graeciae tempora, afterwards moving to Rome, where for several years he was associated with the German Archaeological Institute.

In 1853, he received an appointment at Bonn, but within a few years, returned to Rome as second secretary of the DAI, serving under Wilhelm Henzen. In 1865 he was chosen inaugural professor for archaeology at the Ludwig Maximilians University of Munich. Among his pupils were Gustav Körte, Adolf Furtwängler, Paul Arndt, Walther Amelung, Arthur Milchhöfer and Heinrich Bulle.

For a number of years, he collected artwork for the Glyptothek in Munich, being instrumental in making the museum an important center for the study of classical sculpture. Brunn's impressive collection of casts at the Glyptothek was destroyed during World War II.