Draft:Max Hinsche

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Max Hinsche
Born	(1896-05-02)May 2, 1896 Radeberg, Germany
Died	November 23, 1939(1939-11-23) (aged 43) Rottenmann, Styra, Austria
Resting place	Cemetery Rottenmann, Styra, Austria
Nationality	German
Citizenship	Germany
Spouse	Frieda Hinsche
Scientific career
Fields	German natural scientist and writer, taxidermist, dermoplasticist, big game hunter, trapper,
Institutions	Germany, Canada / Alberta, Yukon Territory

Max Hinsche (* May 2, 1896 in Radeberg, + November 23, 1939 in Rottenmann, Styria, Austria) was a German taxidermist, who also worked in the field of dermoplastics. He was a big game hunter, a trapper, a natural scientist and a writer.

The Staatliche Museen für Tierkunde und Völkerkunde Dresden (State Museums of Zoology and Ethnology Dresden) assigned Hinsche the task to explore Alberta and the Yukon Territory in Canada, an almost undiscovered territory at that time. He had to collect and preserve rare and previously unknown mammals and birds. Hinsche explored the areas for nine years, from 1926 to 1935. He described his results and experiences, all of them scientifically based, in his book Kanada wirklich erlebt (Canada – really experienced); First edition at the publisher's J. Neumann, Neudamm and Berlin 1938, with 30 art prints and a map.^[1]

Biography

Hinsche was the son of the wheelwright Wilhelm Hinsche (*1872 Zörbig; + 1946 Radeberg) and his wife Agnes, née Leuschner (*1874 Steinölsa; +1909 Radeberg). He had three siblings. After his mother's early death, his father married Ernestine Pauline Roitsch, née Neugebauer (*1876 Strehlen; + 1965 Radeberg), a woman who already had two children.

Max Hinsche 1914

From 1902 to 1910, Max Hinsche attended the boys’ school in Radeberg (today Pestalozzischule Radeberg Oberschule). He was a scientifically gifted boy, and he was completely absorbed in collecting small animals and birds with their eggs, a favorite leisure pursuit at that time. In this way, he also developed his skills of taxidermy. Early in is life, he was enthralled by reading reports of the gold rush in Canada and Alaska, and he dreamed of going there later. He wanted to become a forester or a hunter after finishing school, but his parents weren't able to afford such an occupational training. So he served an apprenticeship in sheet glass working, and he got his master craftsman's diploma at the age of 18.

During the First World War, in 1915, he was called up for military service, and he went into the infantry of Königlich Sächsisches 16. Infanterie Regiment Nr. 182 (Royal Saxon 16 Infantry Regiment no 182), the so called Freiberger. The fierce battles on the Western front shaped his world view. In August 1916, he was injured in the battle of the Somme and mustered out. After his recovery, he worked in his trade again. In May 1919, he married Emma Frieda, née Horst (1896–1979) from Bautzen. In December 1919, his first daughter Lieselotte (+ 1939) was born, and in 1936 his second daughter Annegret saw the light of day.

Hinsche suffered more and more from stomach trouble as a result of his hunger and malnutrition; during his 9-year-long Canada-expedition. The extreme physical challenges had increasingly damaged his health. In November 1939, while hunting in Styria, he suffered a stomach perforation. Medical aid came too late, and Hinsche died in hospital in Rottenmann/Styria on November 23, 1939.

Work

Early scientific work

Ornithological Institute of Rossitten, um 1920

Hinsche worked as a taxidermist in his free time, and that was also his second job. After the First World War, he had his first contacts with Staatliche Museen für Tierkunde Dresden (State Museums of Zoology Dresden). Here, he got to know the famous ornithologist Paul Bernhardt (* February 5, 1886, Mittweida; + May 29, 1952, Moritzburg). He stayed in scientific contact with him throughout his life.^[2] They both applied themselves to nature conservation and the research on bird migration. They put a ring on hundreds of birds (breeding, resting and migrant bird populations) in the core zone of the Radeberg Hüttertal nature reserve^[3] at the Ornithological Institute of Helgoland and at the Ornithological Institute of Rossitten/East Prussia. Hinsche and Bernhardt made the film Gefiederte Räuber (Birds of prey).^[4] They had been instructed to make such a film by Dresdner FilmFirma A. Linke (Dresden Film-Firm A. Linke) and the Landesverein Sächsischer Heimatschutz (Association of the Protection of the Countryside in Saxony). They filmed in the area around Radeberg, mainly in the valley of Hüttertal. They delta]]. But Hinsche had to make preparations for his Canada-expedition. The State Museum of Zoology Dresden had succeeded in getting the permission of the authorities in Canada for Hinsche to go on a scientific expedition there in order to collect mammals and birds.

Georg Naumann, Partner of Hinsche

Expedition to Canada

On May 26, 1926, Hinsche got ready for his journey, and he boarded together with his partner Georg Naumann (*November 10, 1901, Radeberg; + June 6, 1978, taAthabasca/Upper Wells) the RMS Empress of France from Hamburg to Quebec, both of them almost without means. Until September 1926, they worked on a farm in Headingly near Winnipeg/Manitoba to earn the necessary money for their equipment to survive in the primeval Canadian forests and to be able to go to the north of the Canadian [Alberta]], to Athabasca.

The first log cabin on the Athabasca River

Athabasca/Alberta

At the beginning of October 1926, they ventured further into the wilderness, and they went ca. 220 km downstream the Athabasca River and northwards, through the rapids of the Pelican-River into the area of Pelican Portage. Together they built a log cabin and lived as trappers. Both of them made their living from the sale of animals’ skins. However, they separated from each other after a year because of their economic situation. At the same time, Max Hinsche shot big game, such as moose, bears, deer, elk, lynxes, wolves, foxes, often to survive, and also small mammals and birds, which were still unknown at that time. He prepared and stuffed them then for the Museum of Zoology Dresden. In January 1931, he went to Germany for a short holiday. There he was awarded a gold medal for his stuffed animal of a huge life-size moose (giant elk, Alces alces andersoni) at a hunting exhibition in Berlin on the occasion of “Grüne Woche” (Green week). In June 1931, he returned to Canada. Living there as a trapper and all on his own, he had to face extremely difficult living conditions. Every time he met native descendants of the Indian tribe of the Cree (especially the Plains Cree), his behavior towards them bore all the marks of brotherly love and willingness to help.^[5]

Yukon Territory

At the end of 1934, he started out for the Yukon-Territory. He had always dreamed of going to that uncharted region where many mountains were still without names. He wanted to hunt there and collect rare species of big game. It can be proved that Hinsche was the first “white hunter” there. Near the ice front of the Kaskawulsh Glacier, at the confluence of the Kaskawulsh River and the Alsek River, he shot dead the Alaska-gigant bear (Kodiak bear, Ursus arctos middendorffi), the only bear of its kind that has been seen in that region up to now. It is still a sensation; those bears are found absolutely seldom on the mainland. That bear was 3 metres high, when placed in an upright position, and had a weight of 500 kilograms. Only in March 2014, its hide, which was prepared for long durability, turned up again [7]. It was identified [8] in “Senckenberg Naturhistorische Sammlungen Dresden, Museum für Tierkunde” (Senckenberg Museum of Natural History Collection Dresden, Museum of Zoology). Prior to this, it had been assumed that the hide was lost due to war damage.

In the mountains and the alpine ice fields of the Yukon Territory, he shot rare mountain sheep, among others Dall sheep (Ovis dalli) and the extremely rare mountain goats (Oreamnos americanus), which can be found only at heights of 3,000 to 5,000 metres, Alaska-Yukon Moose (Alces alces gigas), caribous (Rangifer tarandus) or reindeer, brown bears (Ursus arctos), among them grizzly bears (Ursus arctos horribilis), black bears (Ursus americanus), beavers (Castor canadensis). He lived in the Yukon Territory for almost one year, most of the time as a nomad, equipped with a simple tent. He had to survive temperatures of up to minus 60 degrees Celsius (-76° F), and the inconceivable forces of nature.

In that time, he went out on expeditions to the Kaskawulsh River, into the McArthur Mountains. He almost came to the Arctic Circle, to the Malaspina Glacier and the Kluene Lake. When asked by the Canadian authorities, Hinsche worked out a list of wild animals on the basis of his scientific observations for the authorities in Whitehorse. He also put necessary proposals forward for protecting those animals. Some years later, a part of that huge area was protected by law, which was the basis of the (Kluane National Park and Reserve of Canada), founded in 1976.

Back in Germany

At the end of December 1934, Hinsche's residence permit expired. In February 1935, he went back to Germany, to his home town Radeberg. Back in Germany after 9 years, he was confronted with a country that bore all the marks of National Socialism. With the help of the government of Saxony, the Museum of Zoology Dresden bought a large part of the valuable and rare items of Hinsche's collection from Canada. In the goods inward books of the Museum of Zoology,^[6] you can still find a list of over 130 kinds of animals, trophies and skins of animals, documented by Hinsche, which were all preserved thanks to the art of taxidermy. A large part of those exhibits, including extremely valuable and rare species (birds mainly in pairs), survived the Second World War by relocating them to other places. They can still be seen in the Museum of Zoology, Dresden (Senckenberg Museum of Natural History Collection).

Already in September 1935, Hinsche's longing for living in harmony with nature became more and more intense again. He also wanted to get away from the notorious Gauleiter and Reich Governor Martin Mutschmann, who wanted to use Hinsche and his popularity for his dirty deals. His retreat was the Saxon Switzerland, the frontier area of the Bohemian Switzerland. There, he went to Hinterdaubitz and the area around Reinhardtsdorf, where he worked as a manager of a hunting ground.

Romania / Transylvania

A year later, Hinsche got an offer from an heir of the Kaufhaus Renner in Dresden (department store 'Renner') to work as a manager of his hunting ground in the Carpathian Mountains / Transylvania. Hinsche started his new job in August 1936. That hunting ground in the Carpathians, south of Mühlbach (district Alba Iulia) between Surian-Mühlbacher Gebirge and Zibinsgebirge, extended over an area of about 300 square kilometers and up to altitudes of over 2,200 meters above sea level. He worked there for over a year. During that time, he traveled via Bucharest to the Black Sea and into the bird paradise of Dobrudscha. He succeeded in collecting rare bird skins, among them sea eagles (Haliaeetus albicilla), Eastern imperial eagles (Eastern imperial eagle), various kinds of vultures (Aegypiinae), giant bustards (Otis tarda), wood grouses (Tetrao urogallus) and others.

During the time in the Carpathians, he also worked on his manuscript for his book Kanada wirklich erlebt (Canada really experienced), which was published for the first time in 1938.

Return to Radeberg

Hinsche returned to Radeberg in October 1937. In January 1938, he was honored by the Museum of Zoology Dresden with a special display of his most beautiful and valuable skins and stuffed animals, which were highly appreciated by experts. One of Hinsche's friends, the owner of a manor in Kleinwolmsdorf Hans Fleischer (1892–1967), hired him to work as a game keeper in his hunting ground in Karlswald (a large forest area near Arnsdorf). He provided him with a sufficient income in addition to his work as a taxidermist. In Radeberg, Hinsche was engaged in his trade as a taxidermist on his plot of land Kleinwolmsdorfer Straße 7. He described himself as a specialist for hunting trophies with 25-year-experience at home and abroad in his company publications. He also gave instructions in trophy preservation and their maintenance. After his return from Canada, Hinsche was also engaged in publishing and giving lectures to experts, and to the public as well.^[7]

Hinsche wielded lasting influence on generations of interested young people. He aroused their interest in the job of a taxidermist and the art of dermoplastics. One of them was the later famous entomologist Werner Heinz Muche (1911–1987) from Radeberg. Because Hinsche wasn't good at doing business, Muche took on the job of selling rare species, skins and trophies to museums, institutes and universities, among others to the University of Forestry Eberswalde and to the collection of Julius Riemer (1880–1959) in Wittenberg.

Styria

Rottenmann/Styria, Hinsche's final resting place

In 1939, Max Hinsche's state of health got worse. He had always suffered from stomach trouble after his years full of privation in Canada. He didn’t follow his friends’ advice to undergo an operation and accepted one of his hunting friend’s invitation to work as a forest warden in Styria. He was absolutely determined to shoot a special kind of chamois to complete his collection. In November 1939, he went to Rottenmann in Styria. From there, he climbed through the mountains to hunt. He succeeded in shooting a chamois, but he suffered from a stomach perforation due to the strenuous climbing in the almost impassable mountainous wilderness. Help came too late, and Hinsche died at the age of 43 in a hospital in Rottenmann. There, at the cemetery in Rottenmann, he was laid to rest, too.

Appreciation

Hinsche's pioneering work on the exploration of the northern Alberta and the Yukon Territory is highly appreciated. He was acknowledged as the first explorer and collector of zoological objects in those regions. He described his observations as a trapper, a big-game hunter and a taxidermist together with his conclusions in the book 'Kanada wirklich erlebt' (Canada – really experienced). In the archive of Schloss Klippenstein (Castle Klippenstein) in Radeberg, you can find Hinsche's original diaries with his daily notes and other written documents from his time in Alberta.

Hinsche's self-made photo album made of moose, ca. 1931

Hinsche's photo album with a lot of photos (in private ownership) and his collections reflect his hard life under extreme conditions in the far north of Canada from 1926 to 1936. They are of remarkably good quality, considering Hinsche's conditions of life. Most of his stuffed animals, among them species of mammals and birds from the Canadian wilderness that are already died out there today, are in top condition as well. You can find items of Hinsche's collection in the Museum of Zoology Dresden (Senckenberg Museum of Natural History Collection), Naturkundemuseum Leipzig (Museum of Nature Study), in Berlin, Basel, Rome, in the Julius-Riemer-Museum in Lutherstadt Wittenberg (Luther's Town of Wittenberg), in the University of Forestry Eberswalde, in the Museum Schloss Klippenstein in Radeberg (Castle Klippenstein), in Pestalozzischule Radeberg, to name only a few. Hinsche's observations and analyses of the behavior of wolves (canis lupus) are highly informative for today’s scientists, too. Scientists of the University of Calgary refer to Hinsche's important discoveries in their current studies of the reintegration of wolves that live in the wilderness into cultivated and inhabited areas.^{[8] [9] [10]}

Memorial grove for Max Hinsche in the Radeberger Hüttertal

In 2014, members of the study group 'History of the town of Radeberg' delved into Hinsche's life and work. He was almost forgotten then. These studies resulted in publishing the book “Traum von Kanada – Traum von Freiheit. Das Leben des Max Hinsche” ^[11]. Soon after that, “Förderverein Hüttertal e.V.” (association for supporting) took the initiative and put up a memorial site (a kind of grove) to honor him. The memorial is known as ‘Max-Hinsche-Hain’ [14] in Hüttertal (valley) Radeberg. The opening ceremony and with it Hinsche's work and life were honorably mentioned in a lot of publications. [15] [16] [17] [18] [19]

References

1. Max Hinsche: Kanada wirklich erlebt. Neun Jahre als Trapper und Jäger. Neumann-Neudamm, Melsungen 1938, Reprint 1940; OCLC 35791084. New edition 1988 through 1996 in two volumes
2. Paul Bernhardt: Erlebnisse eines Sachsen in Kanada. In: Erwin Jäger (Hrsg.): Mitteldeutsche Monatshefte (Sächsische Heimat), Jahrgang 10. Verlag Oscar Laube, Dresden 1927, OCLC 183379933
3. Paul Bernhardt: Erfahrungen und Beobachtungen bei Raubvogel-Beringungen. In: Rud. Zimmermann (Hrsg.)}}: Mitteilungen des Vereins sächsischer Ornithologen. Band 3 (1930–1932). Eigenverlag des Vereins, Dresden,
4. Gefiederte Räuber Das Bundesarchiv: Gefiederte Räuber C.A. Linke u. Co, Dresden, Erlauschtes aus der Vogelwelt, Aufnahmen unserer Tagesraubvögel (Pictures of our daytime birds of prey) von Paul Bernhardt, Dresden.
5. Max Hinsche: Kanada wirklich erlebt Reprint. Teil 1: Athabasca-Zeit. Neumann-Neudamm, Melsungen 1988, ISBN 3-7888-0542-0
6. Archives in Senckenberg Naturhistorische Sammlungen Dresden
7. Redaktioneller Artikel: Max Hinsche spricht in Radeberg (Editorial article: Max Hinsche speaks in Radeberg). In: Radeberger Zeitung. 6. April 1935
8. Valerius Geist, University oy Calgary, Kanada: Lassen sich Großraubtiere in bewohnter Kulturlandschaft halten? Abgerufen am 5. Januar 2015 (In: Beiträge zur Jagd- und Wildforschung, Band 39. 2014).
9. Valerius Geist, University oy Calgary, Kanada: Origin of the myth of harmless wolves (engl.). Archiviert vom Original am 7. Mai 2013; abgerufen am 10. Mai 2013 (Deutscher Titel: Die Entstehung des Mythos vom harmlosen Wolf).
10. Valerius Geist, University oy Calgary, Kanada: When Do Wolves Become Dangerous to Humans? (engl.). (PDF) Archiviert vom Original (nicht mehr online verfügbar) am 13. Februar 2015; abgerufen am 8. August 2025 (Deutscher Titel: Wann werden Wölfe gefährlich für die Menschen?)
11. Renate Schönfuß-Krause and Klaus Schönfuß: Traum von Kanada – Traum von Freiheit, Das Leben des Max Hinsche. Eigenverlag der Verfasser, Radeberg 2014 (teamwork-schoenfuss.de 4. Überarbeitete Neuauflage 2023. Mit vielen z.T. historischen Abbildungen und Originalaufnahmen von Max Hinsche und Partner Georg Naumann sowie Karten). (The dream of Canada – the dream of freedom. The life of Max Hinsche)

Further reading

• Max Hinsche: Kanada wirklich erlebt. Neun Jahre als Trapper und Jäger. Neumann-Neudamm, Melsungen 1938, Reprint 1940; OCLC 35791084. New editions from 1988 to 1996 in two volumes and in 2018 in one volume.
• Renate Schönfuß-Krause und Klaus Schönfuß: Traum von Kanada – Traum von Freiheit, Das Leben des Max Hinsche; own publisher; With a lot of original documents, maps and photos of Max Hinsche and his partner Georg Naumann.
• Klaus Schönfuß: Max Hinsche (1896–1939) – Präparator, Großwildjäger, Trapper, Naturwissenschaftler, Schriftsteller. in: Radeberger Blätter zur Stadtgeschichte. Yearly periodical 11, 2013; (Hrsg.: Große Kreisstadt Radeberg in Zusammenarbeit mit der AG Stadtgeschichte).
• Klaus Schönfuß: Eine Radeberger Legende – Max Hinsche (1896–1939). Issued in 6 instalments in: "die Radeberger", from 2014-01-17 to 2014-04-04; Issued from 02/2014 to 13/2014 (PDF), Retrieved 2025-08-17
• David Halsey, Diana Landau: Wildes Paradies Kanada. Reader's Digest Verlag - Das Beste, Stuttgart - Zürich - Wien 1998. Title of the original edition: THROUGH THE GREAT CANADIAN WILDERNESS; published by The Reader's Digest Association Limited, London 1995
• Renate Schönfuß-Krause und Klaus Schönfuß: Georg Naumann - Naturforscher, Pionier der Erdgaserkundung in Kanada, Partner von Max Hinsche in Kanada. Sächsische Landes- und Universitätsbibliothek Dresden 2021.
• Klaus Schönfuß: Eine Radeberger Legende - Max Hinsche (1896 - 1939). Sächsische Landes- und Universitätsbibliothek Dresden 2021.
• Renate Schönfuß-Krause und Klaus Schönfuß: Eine Radeberger Legende – Max Hinsche (1896–1939). Präparator, Großwildjäger, Trapper, Naturwissenschaftler, Schriftsteller. In: Zwischen Großer Röder und Kleiner Spree - Geschichte Natur Landschaft. Periodical 9, 2016; Hrsg.: Museum der Westlausitz (Museum of West Lusatia).

Category:1896 births Category:1939 deaths Category:German writers Category:20th-century naturalists Category:German natural history collectors