“Christ with the Adulteress” is one of the most famous forgeries in history. Painted by the 20th-century Dutch artist Han van Meegeren, it was sold to the infamous Nazi Hermann Goring who considered it among his most prized collections. After the Second World War ended, Goring faced both the war trials (which resulted in his condemnation and execution) and the fact that his beloved “Vermeer” was forged. A witness who was watching the Nazi as he was told that his painting was a fake reported that Goring “looked as if for the first time he had discovered there was evil in the world.” Han van Meergeren – who had confessed to his forgeries – became a hero for the Dutch for swindling the Nazis. He was sentenced to a year’s imprisonment but died of heart failure before his sentence was carried out.
