🔗 Share this article

The descendants of a Jewish spouses have brought a case against The Met, claiming that a Vincent van Gogh art piece was stolen by the Third Reich.

Historical Background

As stated in the lawsuit, the Stern couple acquired the painting, titled Gathering Olives, in the year 1935. A year after, they were obliged to escape their home in Munich, Germany just before the Second World War.

The legal action argues that the institution, which acquired the painting in 1956 for one hundred twenty-five thousand dollars, must have realized it was likely looted property. The heirs are now demanding the restitution of the painting along with damages.

In the decades since World War II, this stolen artwork has been often and discreetly exchanged, bought and sold in and through NYC, claims the lawsuit.

Family's Flight

Hedwig and Frederick Stern escaped from their Munich home to California in the late 1930s with their offspring due to the oppressive Nazi regime. Yet, they were barred from transporting the artwork, which was produced by the Dutch post-impressionist in 1889.

Before they left, Nazi authorities classified the masterpiece as property of the state and prohibited the family from exporting it. After obtaining permission from a regime representative, a trustee appointed by the regime disposed of the piece on the family's behalf. However, the money from the auction were held in a blocked account, which the authorities later took.

Subsequent Ownership

Around 1948, or shortly after, the artwork was brought to NYC and was purchased by Vincent Astor, one of America's wealthiest people. Subsequently, it was sold through a gallery to the institution, which then sold it to Greek shipping magnate the magnate and his wife, Mrs. Goulandris, in 1972.

The Goulandris pair founded the BEG in 1979, which operates a museum in Athens where the masterpiece is currently on display.

Legal Arguments

The institution and a living relative of Goulandris are identified in the suit. The legal action claims that the family and its related entities have covered up the artwork's provenance and current place from the heirs.

Even now, the defendants continue to conceal the manner and time the institution came into control of the piece; the Stern family's ownership of the masterpiece from several years; and the facts that the Nazis confiscated the Painting from the heirs, pressured the family into disposing of it via a regime representative, and confiscated the proceeds of the sale.

Earlier Lawsuits

The descendants submitted a comparable case in California in 2022, but it was thrown out in the following years. An legal challenge was also dismissed in spring 2025.

Museum's Response

The lawsuit contends that the institution's buying of the artwork was approved by Theodore Rousseau Jr, the museum's curator of Old Masters and a leading authority on art theft during the Nazi era. Rousseau and the Met must have known that the artwork had almost certainly been looted by Nazis.

The institution said in a statement that it prioritizes its longstanding commitment to address claims from the Nazi period.

A spokesperson stated: Not once during the institution's custody of the artwork was there any evidence that it had previously been owned to the heirs – indeed, that knowledge did not become accessible until many years after the painting left the Museum's collection.

The museum's disposal of Olive Picking met the Met's guidelines for deaccessioning – namely, it was noted that the artwork was considered to be of inferior standard than other pieces of the same type in the collection. Although The Met respectfully stands by its view that this piece entered the inventory and was sold lawfully and well within all guidelines and policies, the institution welcomes and will consider any additional details that emerges.

Foundation's Defense

Legal counsel on behalf of the Goulandris Foundation stated: BEG is a renowned institution in the Greek capital. The action to litigate and defame the organization and the family in the America upon deceptive and insufficient accusations was earlier rejected, twice. We are certain it will be a third time.