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The descendants of a Jewish spouses have initiated legal proceedings against New York's Metropolitan Museum, asserting that a Van Gogh art piece was seized by the Nazis.

Historical Background

According to the court documents, the Stern couple purchased the painting, titled Gathering Olives, in the year 1935. Just one year later, they were obliged to escape their dwelling in Munich, Germany just before WWII.

The suit contends that the institution, which obtained the artwork in 1956 for a significant sum, should have known it was almost certainly looted property. The heirs are now demanding the return of the artwork along with compensation.

Following the war, this Nazi-looted painting has been repeatedly and secretly trafficked, purchased and sold in and through NYC, alleges the lawsuit.

Family's Flight

Hedwig and Frederick Stern departed from Munich to California in the late 1930s with their large family due to persecution by the Nazis. However, they were prevented from taking the painting, which was created by the renowned Dutch in the late 19th century.

Prior to their departure, the regime declared the painting as property of the state and banned the couple from bringing it with them. After obtaining permission from a regime representative, a agent designated by the regime sold the painting on the couple's behalf. Yet, the proceeds from the auction were held in a blocked account, which the Nazis later confiscated.

Later Transactions

By 1948, or not long after, the artwork was brought to New York and was purchased by a wealthy American, among the richest individuals in the US. Subsequently, it was transferred through a gallery to the Met, which then sold it to wealthy Greek businessman Basil Goulandris and his wife, Elise Goulandris, in the early 1970s.

Basil and Elise established the Goulandris Foundation in 1979, which operates a institution in Athens where the artwork is currently on display.

Court Allegations

The institution and a family member of the magnate are named as defendants. The filing states that the Goulandris family and its associated organizations have concealed and disguised the masterpiece's history and location from the heirs.

Currently, the Goulandris Defendants continue to obscure the manner and time the foundation came into ownership of the Painting; the couple's ownership of the Painting from several years; and the truth that the Third Reich looted the canvas from the family, pressured the couple into selling it via a regime representative, and confiscated the money of the sale.

Earlier Lawsuits

The descendants initiated a comparable case in California in 2022, but it was thrown out in 2024. An legal challenge was also denied in recently.

The Met's Position

The lawsuit states that the Met's purchase of the piece was authorized by the museum's expert, the institution's specialist of European art and a leading authority on Nazi art looting. The curator and the museum must have known that the masterpiece had almost certainly been looted by the regime.

The museum responded that it is committed to its historical dedication to resolve Nazi-era claims.

An official remarked: At no time during the museum's possession of the piece was there any record that it had earlier been possessed to the heirs – indeed, that data did not become accessible until many years after the painting left the institution's holdings.

The institution's deaccessioning of the artwork met the museum's strict criteria for removal from collection – namely, it was documented that the artwork was deemed to be of lower caliber than other pieces of the comparable nature in the inventory. Although the institution respectfully stands by its stance that this work entered the inventory and was deaccessioned lawfully and well within all guidelines and policies, the institution invites and will examine any further evidence that emerges.

BEG's Response

William Charron representing BEG stated: The Goulandris Foundation is a highly prestigious organization in Greece. The effort to take legal action against the organization and the Goulandris family in the America upon deceptive and insufficient accusations was previously dismissed, twice. We are confident it will be a third time.