Gunnar Heckscher
Heckscher was born in Djursholm, son of economist Eli Heckscher. He graduated from Uppsala University in 1927 and obtained a PhD 1934. He lectured in political science at Uppsala between 1933 and 1941 and at what later became Stockholm University between 1941 and 1948. He was Dean of the Social Institute of Stockholm 1945-1954. He became a professor in 1948 and worked at both the Social Institute and at Stockholm University.
William S. Heckscher
Heckscher was commissioned in 1931 to paint a portrait of Gustav Pauli, the director of Kunsthalle Hamburg. While at work in Pauli's office, they were interrupted by a strange little man unknown to Heckscher. The man, apparently a colleague of Pauli, immediately launched into some Dürer problem that was troubling him. The stranger's animated discussion with Pauli left Heckscher astounded at the depth of the man's insight. Intrigued, Heckscher followed Panofsky to his office and all but begged to study under him. Panofsky was thoroughly unimpressed by Heckscher's education—he had never finished high school—but Heckscher persisted, and Panofsky eventually relented, telling him of a program to support gifted students who had not completed high school. Heckscher passed the rigorous examination and was accepted into the University of Hamburg, but was only grudgingly given a seat in the back of Panofsky's seminar.