Georg Dehio

Born in Reval, now Tallinn, on November 22, 1850, Georg Dehio became one of the most influential art historians of the German-speaking world. He studied history in Dorpat, Göttingen, and Bonn, and later taught at universities including Königsberg, Strasbourg, and Tübingen.

Dehio is especially remembered for starting the Handbuch der deutschen Kunstgeschichte in 1900, a major reference work on German art history that remained important long after his lifetime. He was also closely associated with the study and preservation of architectural monuments, helping define a careful, historically minded approach to cultural heritage.

He died in Tübingen on March 21, 1932. Even today, his name remains strongly connected with the documentation of historic art and architecture, and with the idea that old buildings should be understood in their historical context rather than remade to suit modern taste.