Salon Kitty's lost painting appears in Spandau!

Salon Kitty's lost painting appears in Spandau!

On October 5, 2025, a lost oil painting by Kätchen Emma Sophie Schmidt, better known as Kitty Schmidt, reappeared in Berlin. The picture once hung in the renowned and notorious Nazi-Bordell "Salon Kitty", which Schmidt operated in Berlin-Charlottenburg. This establishment, which was opened in 1939, served not only prostitution, but also for secret espionage activities of the Nazi security service, part of the SS. The ladies under SS leadership had the task of listing foreign diplomats in the brothel and collecting information in order to support the machinations of the National Socialist government. According to [Deutschlandfunk Kultur] (https://www.deutschlandfunkkultur.de/verschollen- Gemaelde-Aus-beriner-Nazi-Bordell-Wieder-Aufticht-102.html), the painting in Spandau was found, where it was in a private living room for 24 years.

Kitty Schmidt, born on June 25, 1882 in Hamburg, ran the salon with the aim of maintaining German dignitaries and foreign guests. She was known to choose stylish and multilingual women who were able to elicit information from the guests, often under the influence of alcohol. The guests of the salon included high-ranking Nazi officials and diplomats, including Joseph Goebbels and the Italian Foreign Minister Galeazzo Ciano. Schmidt remained the official operator of the salon, although in 1939 it was put under pressure by Reinhard Heydrich and Walter Schellenberg to use the business for the espionage, which she probably did not voluntarily did.

The secret of the painting

The rediscovery of the portrait could bring significant progress in research around the Salon Kitty. The authors of the book “Kittys Salon” had searched for the picture for years. According to the Wikipedia, the works that hung in the salon became part of the history of the First and Second World War. The painting was acquired by a woman in a junk shop whose name was not announced. The artist and the formation of the portrait are still unclear and are to be determined by an expert.

Salon Kitty also received attention after the end of the Second World War. Although the brothel had to close due to an air raid in 1943, it apparently continued to operate Schmidt's descendants. According to historical reports, Kitty Schmidt died in 1954 without revealing the identity of her famous customers, and no written evidence of spy activities in the salon is found. Nevertheless, numerous stories circulate about secret recordings and listening devices that were installed during the operational time. An open secret was that talks in the salon were regularly listened to, which was known among the guests.

The story of Kitty Schmidt and Salon Kitty takes a fascinating view of the restricted relationship between power and sexual services during the Third Reich. The rediscovery of Schmidt's portrait could help to further illuminate this significant era through art and memory. In the 1990s, the salon building was converted into an asylum seeker home, but had to quickly close again due to local protests. Misunderstandings and myths around the brothel, whose influence extended for a long time beyond the war, are part of a complex narrative structure that is interwoven with the cultural memory of Berlin. Further research could ventilate the last secrets of Salon Kitty and help to refresh the image of history.