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The heirs of a Jewish spouses have brought a case against New York's Metropolitan Museum, alleging that a Vincent van Gogh canvas was looted by Nazi forces.

Origins of the Dispute

Per the court documents, Frederick and Hedwig Stern bought the piece, titled Olive Picking, in 1935. Just one year later, they were forced to flee their dwelling in Munich just before the Second World War.

The suit argues that the Met, which purchased the painting in the 1950s for $125,000, ought to have been aware it was likely confiscated property. The heirs are now demanding the return of the canvas along with compensation.

Following World War II, this plundered piece has been repeatedly and secretly trafficked, purchased and sold in and through the city of New York, claims the court document.

Forced Emigration

Hedwig and Frederick Stern departed from their Munich home to the United States in 1936 with their six children due to the oppressive Nazi regime. Nevertheless, they were barred from transporting the painting, which was created by the Dutch post-impressionist in 1889.

Before they left, Nazi authorities classified the artwork as property of the state and banned the Sterns from taking it abroad. After obtaining permission from a regime representative, a representative assigned by the authorities sold the piece on the family's behalf. However, the proceeds from the transaction were held in a restricted account, which the Nazis later confiscated.

Later Transactions

Around 1948, or shortly after, the painting arrived in the United States and was purchased by a prominent figure, among the richest individuals in the US. Later, it was exchanged through a gallery to the museum, which then transferred it to prominent shipowner the magnate and his spouse, Elise Goulandris, in 1972.

Basil and Elise set up the Goulandris Foundation in 1979, which runs a museum in Athens where the masterpiece is currently exhibited.

Court Allegations

BEG and a family member of Basil Goulandris are listed as respondents. The lawsuit alleges that the Goulandris family and its affiliates have covered up the painting's ownership and location from the family.

Even now, the foundation continue to conceal how and when the BEG came into ownership of the piece; the family's possession of the Painting from 1935 to 1938; and the truth that the Third Reich looted the artwork from the Stern family, coerced the family into parting with it via a trustee, and seized the money of the deal.

Earlier Lawsuits

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

The Met's Position

The complaint contends that the institution's buying of the piece was approved by a curator, the institution's specialist of Old Masters and one of the world's foremost experts on Nazi-era looted art. Rousseau and the Met must have known that the artwork had probably been seized by the Nazis.

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

A representative stated: Never during the museum's possession of the piece was there any documentation that it had previously been owned to the heirs – indeed, that data did not become available until several decades after the masterpiece left the Museum's collection.

The Met's sale of Olive Picking met the museum's strict criteria for deaccessioning – namely, it was noted that the work was considered to be of lower caliber than additional artworks of the same type in the inventory. Although the institution maintains its stance that this artwork entered the holdings and was sold legally and well within all guidelines and policies, the institution welcomes and will consider any additional details that is discovered.

Goulandris Statement

Legal counsel on behalf of the Goulandris Foundation said: The Goulandris Foundation is a esteemed foundation in Athens. The attempt to litigate and defame the institution and the family in the America upon inaccurate and partial claims was previously dismissed, multiple times. We are confident it will be again.