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The family members of a Jewish spouses have brought a case against The Met, claiming that a the Dutch artist oil painting was stolen by the Nazis.

Origins of the Dispute

As stated in the legal filing, the Stern couple acquired the painting, titled Gathering Olives, in the year 1935. Just one year later, they were obliged to escape their home in Munich prior to WWII.

The complaint argues that the museum, which purchased the masterpiece in the 1950s for $125,000, must have realized it was probably confiscated property. The descendants are now demanding the return of the artwork along with damages.

In the decades since World War II, this Nazi-looted painting has been repeatedly and secretly trafficked, acquired and disposed of in and through the city of New York, alleges the lawsuit.

The Sterns' Escape

Hedwig and Frederick Stern escaped from the city of Munich to the United States in 1936 with their large family due to the oppressive Nazi regime. However, they were prevented from taking the painting, which was painted by the Dutch post-impressionist in 1889.

Before they left, Nazi authorities designated the painting as German cultural property and prohibited the Sterns from taking it abroad. Following authorization from a Nazi official, a trustee assigned by the regime sold the painting on the couple's behalf. But, the money from the auction were placed in a frozen account, which the authorities later took.

Subsequent Ownership

In 1948, or not long after, the artwork entered New York and was purchased by a prominent figure, among the richest individuals in the US. Subsequently, it was exchanged through a commercial outlet to the museum, which then passed it on to Greek shipping magnate the magnate and his partner, Elise Goulandris, in the early 1970s.

Basil and Elise set up the Basil & Elise Goulandris Foundation in the late 1970s, which runs a gallery in the Greek capital where the masterpiece is currently on display.

Court Allegations

The foundation and a living relative of Goulandris are identified in the suit. The legal action states that the family and its affiliates have concealed and disguised the artwork's provenance and whereabouts from the plaintiffs.

Even now, the Goulandris Defendants continue to obscure the circumstances the foundation came into possession of the Painting; the Stern family's ownership of the masterpiece from 1935 to 1938; and the reality that the Third Reich stole the artwork from the family, forced the couple into disposing of it via a regime representative, and seized the proceeds of the deal.

Prior Cases

The Stern heirs initiated a comparable case in CA in recently, but it was rejected in 2024. An appeal was also dismissed in recently.

The Met's Position

The complaint argues that the museum's acquisition of the painting was approved by a curator, the institution's specialist of European paintings and a leading authority on Nazi art looting. The institution and its expert were aware or ought to have been aware that the artwork had probably been seized by Nazis.

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

An official commented: Not once during the institution's custody of the artwork was there any record that it had earlier been possessed to the family – in fact, that knowledge did not become accessible until a long time after the painting left the Museum's collection.

The museum's disposal of Olive Picking met the museum's strict criteria for disposal – specifically, it was noted that the artwork was deemed to be of lower caliber than other works of the comparable nature in the collection. Even though the museum maintains its position that this artwork entered the inventory and was deaccessioned lawfully and well within all guidelines and policies, the museum welcomes and will consider any additional details that comes to light.

BEG's Response

Legal counsel acting for the Goulandris Foundation stated: The institution is a renowned institution in Athens. The effort to litigate and defame the institution and the family in the United States upon misleadingly incomplete allegations was already thrown out, multiple times. We are confident it will be again.