Zilkens'
News Blog

Zilkens' News Blog 31 2026

In the business world, you can recognise professionals by the fact that, even in moments that are personally difficult for them, they are able to keep their mouths shut and not involve even their closest colleagues – however hard that may be and however lonely it makes them feel. If one applies this standard to our outgoing Minister of Transportion, one has to conclude: he was no professional; and if any further proof were needed, one need only read the text message he sent to his CDU party colleagues before the announcement – colleagues who, for their part, handled the whole affair just as unprofessionally when they made it public. According to the prevailing view in the press, they have thereby damaged the Chancellor, because he has caused a communications disaster (yet again). In fact, they have damaged themselves and their party, because it is now clear: there are hardly any professionals left in their ranks, just whingeing, self-pitying figures with no political vision beyond clinging to power. Thank you, Mrs Merkel.

It could have been such a lovely weekend at the CSD in Berlin, had it not been for yet another deranged Islamist directing his anti-freedom delusions against people. To bring an event that appeals to tolerance and upholds personal freedom as the highest good to a violent end is an expression of the deepest fascist and inhuman attitudes. If there are now people celebrating this abhorrent act on the internet or elsewhere, it should be clear that they stand neither on the foundations of our Basic Law nor have any right to benefit from the provisions of our social welfare system or our education system. And it doesn’t really matter whether they are German citizens or not. Even surreptitious joy is an expression of the same fascist-like mindset. It is actually quite simple: anyone who opposes personal freedom and tolerance is abandoning the fundamental principles upon which German society has developed over the last 80 years.

Let us instead turn our attention to the Middle Ages; not as a step backwards, but with an eye to the future, towards a research event organised by the German Association for Art History in collaboration with the universities of Dortmund and Bochum. At the same time, the General Meeting of the German Association for Art History will take place on 25 September. The focus will be on the perception and reception of medieval art in the present day. As our society moves ever further away from Christian foundations and, for many, Christmas is no longer remembered as the celebration of the birth of Jesus but as a massive consumer frenzy, engaging with the Middle Ages and its associated iconography can be helpful.

The foundations of the modern insurance industry were also laid in the Middle Ages, when the separation of financing and risk-bearing was introduced in the 13th century. It began with transport insurance, whereby merchants could transfer their risk to third parties in return for a premium. The principle has not changed; it is simply that regulation has increased enormously – which brings us to Switzerland. There, FINMA oversees the entire insurance sector, including the associated distribution channels. As in Germany, Switzerland also has minimum requirements regarding the knowledge of those authorised to discuss insurance with customers. This is clearly defined and is also monitored – in this case, not by the Chambers of Commerce and Industry, as in Germany. As the quality of insurance companies’ employed intermediaries is monitored by the companies themselves, the more than 12,000 independent intermediaries in Switzerland have been under the direct supervision of FINMA since 2024. Following a two-year grace period, every intermediary must now undergo re-evaluation. If they fail to do so, they will lose their licence. Credit must be given to those responsible for implementing the process: they have developed a fully online learning and examination tool that allows candidates to sit their exam at any time. Using the same system, interested parties can also sit their exams to become VBV-certified insurance intermediaries. If applied in Germany, this would eliminate the subjective factors inherent in the examinations currently administered by the Chambers of Industry and Commerce (IHKs) and place the whole process on an effective footing that is potentially less stressful for candidates. In any case, sales aptitude only becomes apparent in practice.

Cuts are being made to cultural spending left, right and centre. No sooner does a new mayor take office in a French town – and here it clearly makes no difference which party they belong to – than museum projects are halted, theatre budgets are slashed or concerts are cancelled. The arguments sometimes vary; often it is a question of finances, but it is certainly also, in all sorts of ways, a question of political persuasion. At this point, we should take another look at the funding of culture in some European countries: the distribution of resources appears to be similar in Germany, France, Spain, Italy and the UK. The smallest share goes to central federal authorities or national ministries (usually between 10 and 20 per cent of the total budget), whilst by far the largest share goes to decentralised structures such as the federal states, cities and local authorities, which, depending on the country, account for between 80 and 90 per cent of cultural budgets.

Against the backdrop of the local and state elections taking place in Germany after the summer holidays, it should be clear to anyone who cares about a diverse range of cultural provision that their vote carries significantly more weight in these elections than in federal elections. ChatGPT has helped a little with the table below, and it provides food for thought:

Country | Total public spending on culture | Population | Per capita | Note

France: €15–16 billion I 68 million €225–235 I Highly centralised; substantial investment in national museums and monuments.

Germany approx. €15 billion 84 million approx. €180 I Federal funding; local authorities and federal states bear the lion’s share.

United Kingdom approx. €10–12 billion 69 million €150–170 I Significantly lower state funding; sharp decline in local authority cultural expenditure since 2010.

Italy approx. €8–10 billion 59 million €140–170 I Focus on heritage conservation and World Heritage sites; much funding goes towards the preservation of historic buildings.

Spain approx. €7–8 billion 49 million €140–160 I Significant responsibility lies with the autonomous communities and major cities (Madrid, Barcelona, Bilbao).

Enjoy the summer break and do stay in touch. Despite the summer lull, Stefan Kobel has found plenty to write and report on regarding the art market.

Yours, Stephan Zilkens and the team at Zilkens Fine Art Insurance Broker GmbH in Solothurn and Cologne