In the early 1950s, the German poet and physician Gottfried Benn was repeatedly nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature. Drawing on sources from the archive of the Swedish Academy in Stockholm, this essay discusses how Benn was portrayed as a Nobel nominee. His sponsors highlighted not only why he was a remarkable author, but also his national socialist links during the 1930s. The study is part of a new interdisciplinary project that analyses nominations and committee reports for physician and natural scientist candidates for the Nobel Prize in Literature from 1901 to 1970.