Jean-Baptiste ‘Batty’ Weber, born in Rumelange on 25 November 1860, made his name as a writer and journalist before his death in Luxembourg City on 15 December 1940. Between 1913 and 1940, he produced more than 7,000 works. He is particularly known for his controversial essay on Luxembourg’s “mixed culture” and his long-running feuilleton series ‘Abreißkalender’ in the Luxemburger Zeitung (Luxembourg newspaper). Considered one of Luxembourg’s most important authors, the Batty Weber Prize and several streets are named in his honour.
Weber’s desk has long been housed at the National Literature Centre (CNL) in Mersch, where it will return after restoration. According to CNL director Nathalie Jacoby, the desk entered the collection in 2000, when Weber’s family offered it to the institution before moving abroad. The CNL subsequently purchased the piece.
The desk is currently still in Hosingen at the Dohm joinery workshop, which had the honour of bringing this piece of cultural history back to life. The restoration was completed more quickly than expected, taking only a few months. Jacoby said it was important to entrust the work to a Luxembourg-based company.
The desk required restoration partly due to flooding in 2021, which damaged a significant portion of the archive’s holdings. Although the desk itself was not severely affected, the CNL had already planned to refurbish it for an upcoming exhibition on Luxembourg literature.
Jacoby explained the aim of the restoration in more detail: “We made sure that it would not be over-restored. It is an old piece of furniture and should appear as such, with its full history, but it has now been restored in a way that allows it to be displayed again.”
As the piece is not officially listed as protected heritage under Luxembourg’s 2022 heritage law, the restoration was not financed by the state. Culture Minister Eric Thill explained that while the new legislation allows movable heritage to be granted national protection, such a designation requires a formal external application, which had not been submitted in this case.
To secure funding nonetheless, the National Cultural Fund of Luxembourg (FOCUNA) launched a crowdfunding campaign in December 2025 with a target of €25,000, given initial uncertainty over the total cost. The necessary funds were raised quickly, and any surplus will be reinvested in similar restoration projects at the CNL.
FOCUNA president Jo Kox explained that the fund was established 44 years ago to help cultural institutions seek private sponsorship and patronage. The initiative for such campaigns always comes from the institutions themselves, he stressed, not from the fund.
More than 250 donors contributed to the campaign, with around 70% having already taken part in previous fundraising efforts. The average donation amounted to €85.
Kox also stressed that FOCUNA takes no commission: all donations are transferred in full to the beneficiary institution, and donors receive tax-deductible certificates. Campaigns run until the target amount set by the institution is reached, and any surplus can be reinvested in similar cultural projects, he said.
Thill said that there is, of course, no obligation for anyone to contribute to such crowdfunding campaigns, nor are they organised because the Culture Ministry’s budget is insufficient. Citizens are not responsible for safeguarding Luxembourg’s cultural heritage, he stressed.
Thill explained further that crowdfunding initiatives such as the one for Batty Weber’s desk, or previous campaigns for the Giant Bible at the National Library or Joseph Kutter’s painting Le Champion (1932) at the National Museum of Archeology, History, and Art (MNAHA), exist solely to give those who wish to support and take pride in Luxembourg’s cultural heritage the opportunity to do so. However, if donations were not forthcoming, a project would not simply be abandoned, he said. Thill emphasised that if donations were ever insufficient, the state would step in to ensure completion.
Thill also said he was particularly encouraged by the high level of public engagement. He noted that surprisingly many people in Luxembourg show a strong commitment to cultural initiatives and actively contribute to preserving the country’s heritage. He added that although it is often claimed that fewer and fewer people take an interest in culture, the crowdfunding campaign suggests otherwise. Even in times of inflation and political uncertainty in Europe, many residents remain willing to support cultural projects financially, he said.
He observed that donors came from across the country and from a wide range of nationalities and backgrounds.
CNL director Jacoby said she had been overwhelmed by the level of interest and had not expected the funds to be raised so quickly. In the centre’s upcoming exhibition, the restored desk and its history will be made accessible to the public, she explained, with any surplus funds from the campaign used to restore other items damaged during the 2021 floods.
Jacoby added that the public response had been far greater than anticipated, allowing the CNL to undertake further restoration work. She also said the campaign had fostered a strong sense of community, with people feeling connected to the institution. It had provided an opportunity to raise awareness of the CNL’s work and to reintroduce the centre to a wider audience, she said.
The desk remains at the Dohm joinery workshop in Hosingen for now but will soon be returned to the CNL. An RTL report on the restoration, including the first images of the completed desk, is expected to air in the coming weeks.
