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The heirs of a Jewish pair have filed a lawsuit against The Metropolitan Museum of Art, alleging that a Van Gogh art piece was stolen by Nazi forces.

Case History

As stated in the legal filing, Frederick and Hedwig Stern purchased the artwork, titled Gathering Olives, in the mid-1930s. Just one year later, they were compelled to leave their dwelling in the German city of Munich prior to WWII.

The complaint contends that the institution, which purchased the masterpiece in the mid-1950s for a significant sum, ought to have been aware it was likely looted property. The descendants are now demanding the repatriation of the canvas along with compensation.

In the decades since World War II, this Nazi-looted painting has been often and discreetly exchanged, bought and sold in and through NYC, states the court document.

Family's Flight

Hedwig and Frederick Stern fled from their Munich home to the United States in 1936 with their offspring due to the oppressive Nazi regime. However, they were prevented from taking the Van Gogh piece, which was produced by the renowned Dutch in the late 19th century.

Before they left, the regime declared the painting as property of the state and forbade the couple from taking it abroad. Once approved from a regime representative, a representative appointed by the authorities disposed of the piece on the Sterns' behalf. But, the funds from the sale were placed in a frozen account, which the regime later took.

Post-War History

Around 1948, or not long after, the canvas entered the United States and was purchased by a wealthy American, one of America's wealthiest people. Eventually, it was transferred through a art dealer to the institution, which then sold it to prominent shipowner Goulandris and his spouse, Mrs. Goulandris, in the early 1970s.

The Greek couple set up the BEG in 1979, which runs a institution in Athens, Greece where the artwork is currently on display.

Legal Arguments

The institution and a living relative of Goulandris are identified in the suit. The filing states that the family and its affiliates have covered up the painting's ownership and whereabouts from the heirs.

To this day, the foundation continue to conceal the circumstances the BEG came into ownership of the artwork; the couple's ownership of the masterpiece from several years; and the facts that the Nazis confiscated the Painting from the family, pressured the couple into selling it via a trustee, and seized the proceeds of the deal.

Prior Cases

The family submitted a similar complaint in the state of California in 2022, but it was rejected in 2024. An further action was also denied in recently.

The Met's Position

The complaint contends that the museum's acquisition of the painting was authorized by the museum's expert, the institution's specialist of Old Masters and a leading authority on Nazi-era looted art. The institution and its expert must have known that the masterpiece had probably been seized by Nazis.

The Met said in a statement that it takes seriously its historical dedication to resolve claims from the Nazi period.

A spokesperson stated: At no time during the institution's custody of the artwork was there any record that it had once belonged to the heirs – actually, that data did not become accessible until several decades after the artwork left the Museum's collection.

The institution's deaccessioning of the Van Gogh met the museum's strict criteria for disposal – in particular, it was recorded that the piece was judged to be of inferior standard than additional artworks of the same type in the inventory. Even though the institution upholds its view that this work entered the collection and was sold lawfully and well within all rules and regulations, the institution is open to and will review any additional details that comes to light.

BEG's Response

Legal counsel representing the foundation commented: The institution is a renowned institution in Athens. The effort to take legal action against the Foundation and the defendants in the US upon misleadingly incomplete allegations was previously dismissed, multiple times. We are certain it will be again.