New York Times Obituary: July 17, 1979

Dr, Helmuth Nathan, professor emeritus of Surgery and Anatomy at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University, died Sunday at his summer home at Southampton, L.I. An accomplished artist as well as a doctor, he was 77 years old and lived in Manhattan.

Dr. Nathan, who was also chairman or the university's department of the history of medicine, had been a member of the faculty since 1955.

A native of Hamburg, Germany, Dr. Nathan was known for his artistic accomplishments— his paintings, drawings and sculpture are on permanent display in museums, universities and hospitals throughout the world — as well as for medical.research and as an educator. In a tribute to him last year, Dr. Ephraim Friedman, dean of the college, described him as “a Renaissance man.”

In 1973, Dr. Nathan was honored with the officer's cross of the German Order of Merit for his work in promoting relations between German and American scientists.

Dr.Nathan is survived by his wife, the former Irene Nelson; a daughter, Ruth Norden of Hartsdale, N.Y.; a son, Peter; a brother; and two grandchildren.

Princeton University: Rare Books and Special Collections Department of the Firestone Library:

This cast bronze bust of Albert Einstein (1879-1955) is currently on view in the second floor lounge of the Department of Physics in Jadwin Hall on Washington Road.

The artist was Dr. Helmuth Nathan (1901-1979), who emigrated to the United States in 1936 and worked at several hospitals before joining the Albert Einstein College of Medicine at Yeshiva University in 1955 as a professor of surgery and founding faculty member.

In 1973, Nathan was appointed professor and chair of Einstein College’s newly created department of the history of medicine.

Dr. Nathan was not only a published researcher but also a painter, sculptor and graphic artist whose work is displayed in numerous museums, libraries, and private collections.

According to the 2010 Einstein College Alumni Magazine, “Helmuth Nathan is perhaps best known among early Einstein students for bringing nude art models into the lecture hall and attempting to teach medical students how to sketch the human figure.”

A second copy of Dr. Nathan’s bust of Einstein is on view in the lobby of the Siegfried and Irma Ullmann Research Center for Health Sciences.

Leo Baeck Institute and Center for Jewish History, New York City:

Helmuth Nathan, physician, teacher, and historian of medicine was born on October 26, 1901 in Hamburg, Germany.

He studied medicine and philosophy at the Universities of Freiburg and Hamburg and received his medical degree in 1925.

During the period between 1925 and his emigration in 1936, Helmuth Nathan had worked at a number of hospitals in Hamburg and wrote extensively on medical topics.

Dr. Nathan settled in New York in 1936 and became a successful physician.

He also had a life-long association with Albert Einstein College of Medicine, where he taught for many years.

In addition to being a successful physician, Helmuth Nathan was a well established artist, creating drawings, graphics, glass windows, and sculptures. He tried, and succeeded in bringing both of his passions - art and medicine - closer together. He brought precision and clarity of the medical world into his art and his love of arts into his writings on the history of medicine.

Dr Nathan wrote extensively on various medical topics, such as general surgery, surgical infections, pathology, and history of arts and medicine.

Helmuth Nathan died in New York in 1979.