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The heirs of a Jewish couple have filed a lawsuit against The Met, alleging that a Vincent van Gogh art piece was stolen by the Third Reich.

Case History

As stated in the court documents, Hedwig and Frederick Stern bought the painting, titled Gathering Olives, in the year 1935. The following year, they were forced to flee their dwelling in Munich prior to WWII.

The legal action contends that the Met, which acquired the masterpiece in the 1950s for one hundred twenty-five thousand dollars, should have known it was almost certainly stolen property. The heirs are now demanding the repatriation of the canvas along with compensation.

In the decades since World War II, this stolen artwork has been repeatedly and secretly trafficked, acquired and disposed of in and through the city of New York, alleges the legal filing.

The Sterns' Escape

Hedwig and Frederick Stern departed from their Munich home to America in the late 1930s with their offspring due to Nazi persecution. However, they were barred from transporting the Van Gogh piece, which was created by the renowned Dutch in 1889.

Before they left, Nazi authorities classified the artwork as property of the state and forbade the family from exporting it. Once approved from a Third Reich agent, a trustee designated by the authorities auctioned the painting on the family's behalf. However, the funds from the auction were placed in a blocked account, which the Nazis later took.

Subsequent Ownership

By 1948, or not long after, the artwork arrived in NYC and was purchased by a wealthy American, a member of the Astor family. Later, it was sold through a gallery to the Met, which then sold it to prominent shipowner Goulandris and his spouse, Mrs. Goulandris, in 1972.

The Greek couple founded the Basil & Elise Goulandris Foundation in 1979, which operates a institution in the Greek capital where the artwork is currently exhibited.

Legal Arguments

The institution and a family member of Goulandris are named as defendants. The legal action states that the family and its associated organizations have covered up the painting's ownership and location from the family.

Currently, the defendants continue to obscure the circumstances the BEG came into ownership of the artwork; the family's possession of the artwork from the mid-1930s; and the truth that the Nazis looted the canvas from the Stern family, coerced the couple into selling it via a Nazi-appointed agent, and confiscated the money of the sale.

Previous Legal Action

The descendants filed a comparable case in California in 2022, but it was rejected in 2024. An legal challenge was also dismissed in recently.

The Met's Position

The legal action states that the museum's acquisition of the piece was approved by Theodore Rousseau Jr, the institution's specialist of European paintings and a renowned specialist on Nazi art looting. Rousseau and the Met knew or should have known that the Painting had probably been seized by the regime.

The institution said in a statement that it is committed to its longstanding commitment to handle Nazi-era claims.

A spokesperson stated: Not once during the institution's custody of the piece was there any evidence that it had once belonged to the Stern family – in fact, that data did not become available until many years after the artwork left the institution's holdings.

The museum's disposal of Olive Picking met the institution's rigorous standards for disposal – namely, it was recorded that the piece was judged to be of inferior standard than additional artworks of the similar kind in the holdings. While the museum maintains its position that this work entered the collection and was deaccessioned lawfully and well within all guidelines and policies, the museum invites and will examine any additional details that is discovered.

BEG's Response

Legal counsel representing the foundation commented: BEG is a esteemed foundation in Athens. The action to take legal action against the organization and the Goulandris family in the US upon misleadingly incomplete allegations was already thrown out, on two occasions. We are confident it will be once more.