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The heirs of a Jewish spouses have initiated legal proceedings against The Met, asserting that a Vincent van Gogh canvas was stolen by the Third Reich.

Case History

As stated in the court documents, Hedwig and Frederick Stern purchased the piece, titled Olive Harvest, in the year 1935. The following year, they were forced to flee their residence in Munich, Germany on the eve of WWII.

The suit argues that the museum, which obtained the artwork in 1956 for a significant sum, ought to have been aware it was almost certainly looted property. The heirs are now seeking the return of the artwork along with damages.

Since the end of World War II, this plundered piece has been repeatedly and secretly trafficked, acquired and disposed of in and through the city of New York, claims the legal filing.

Forced Emigration

Hedwig and Frederick Stern fled from their Munich home to the United States in the late 1930s with their large family due to Nazi persecution. Nevertheless, they were barred from transporting the artwork, which was produced by the celebrated artist in 1889.

Before the family's emigration, Nazi authorities designated the artwork as property of the state and forbade the Sterns from exporting it. After obtaining permission from a regime representative, a agent assigned by the Nazis auctioned the artwork on the Sterns' behalf. But, the proceeds from the auction were placed in a frozen account, which the Nazis later confiscated.

Subsequent Ownership

In 1948, or not long after, the painting entered the United States and was acquired by Vincent Astor, one of America's wealthiest people. Subsequently, it was sold through a commercial outlet to the museum, which then passed it on to prominent shipowner the magnate and his partner, Elise Goulandris, in the early 1970s.

The Greek couple set up the Goulandris Foundation in the late 1970s, which manages a gallery in the Greek capital where the masterpiece is currently shown.

Court Allegations

The foundation and a surviving nephew of Goulandris are identified in the suit. The legal action states that the defendants and its associated organizations have covered up the painting's ownership and whereabouts from the heirs.

Even now, the Goulandris Defendants continue to hide the manner and time the foundation came into ownership of the artwork; the family's possession of the Painting from the mid-1930s; and the facts that the Third Reich stole the artwork from the Stern family, forced the couple into parting with it via a Nazi-appointed agent, and took the funds of the deal.

Earlier Lawsuits

The family filed a similar complaint in the state of California in 2022, but it was dismissed in 2024. An legal challenge was also dismissed in recently.

Institution's Statement

The lawsuit argues that the Met's purchase of the painting was authorized by a curator, the institution's specialist of European paintings and a leading authority on Nazi art looting. The curator and the museum knew or should have known that the Painting had probably been seized by the Nazis.

The Met issued a statement that it takes seriously its longstanding commitment to resolve claims from the Nazi period.

A representative remarked: Never during The Met's ownership of the artwork was there any record that it had previously been owned to the heirs – in fact, that information did not become accessible until several decades after the masterpiece left the Met's possession.

The museum's disposal of the artwork met the Met's guidelines for disposal – specifically, it was documented that the piece was considered to be of lesser quality than other pieces of the same type in the holdings. While the institution upholds its view that this piece entered the collection and was deaccessioned legally and well within all standards and procedures, the Met welcomes and will consider any additional details that is discovered.

Goulandris Statement

Legal counsel on behalf of the foundation commented: BEG is a esteemed foundation in Greece. The effort to litigate and defame the institution and the defendants in the US upon deceptive and insufficient accusations was previously dismissed, twice. We are certain it will be once more.