Harry Wahl

For the Saskatchewan politician, see Harry Wahl (politician).
Olympic medal record
Men's Sailing
1912 Stockholm 10 metre class

Harry August Wahl (July 17, 1869 – July 31, 1940) was a Finnish businessman, violin collector, and sailor who competed in the 1912 Summer Olympics. He was a crew member of the Finnish boat Nina, which won the silver medal in the 10 metre class.[1][2]

Harry Wahl was the grandson of Vyborg-based industrialist Paul Wahl (1797–1872). The Wahl family had made its fortune by various businesses, many of which were connected to the construction of the Saimaa Canal around the 1850s.[3]

Collector of string instruments

In the 1930s, Harry Wahl owned one of the most significant collections of violins and other string instruments in Europe, including several made by Antonio Stradivari, Guarneri and Amati. When the Russians occupied Vyborg in 1940, the Wahl family secured 32 of the best instruments in their possession while the rest were left with the Russians. [4] Harry Wahl died the same year 1940, and most of his wealth, real estate in the Vyborg area, had to be left behind as his family evacuated to Finland. There, they had to sell the instruments at low prices to start new lives, and the collection was spread around the world. One of the violins, a 1702 Stradivarius called the Irish, was auctioned in Japan in 1986 and purchased by the Finnish Pohjola Bank Art Foundation, and is now the only violin in Harry Wahl’s original collection located in Finland.[5][6]

References

  1. ↑ Harry Wahl Biography and Olympic Results Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Viitattu 1.9.2014.
  2. ↑ Jormito, Jorma: Kävelyllä Viipurissa I: Vesiportinkadulla, Peegee hydatoon blog, Nov. 24, 2013. Read Sept. 1, 2014.
  3. ↑ Koski, Mikko-Oskari: Paul Wahlin perintö, Maritime Forum Jan. 18, 2005. Read Sept. 1, 2014.
  4. ↑ Testamentti vei sodassa kadonneiden arvosoitinten jäljille, Yle Kulttuuri 10.3.2008. Viitattu 1.9.2014.
  5. ↑ Harry Wahlin viulut, Maija-Stiina Roine, os. Kolho, Internet Archive.
  6. ↑ Valtonen, Veikko: Stradivarius ei paljasta salaisuuttaan, Turun Sanomat 25.8.2009. Viitattu 1.9.2014.

Further reading

External links


This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Sunday, March 20, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.