🔗 Share this article

The heirs of a Jewish couple have initiated legal proceedings against The Met, claiming that a the Dutch artist canvas was seized by Nazi forces.

Case History

Per the legal filing, the Stern couple bought the painting, titled Gathering Olives, in 1935. A year after, they were obliged to escape their home in the German city of Munich just before WWII.

The suit contends that the museum, which obtained the masterpiece in the mid-1950s for one hundred twenty-five thousand dollars, ought to have been aware it was probably confiscated property. The heirs are now demanding the return of the canvas along with damages.

In the decades since World War II, this plundered piece has been frequently and covertly traded, purchased and sold in and through NYC, claims the legal filing.

The Sterns' Escape

The Sterns fled from their Munich home to the United States in the late 1930s with their six children due to the oppressive Nazi regime. However, they were unable to bring the artwork, which was created by the renowned Dutch in the late 19th century.

Prior to their departure, the Nazi government classified the masterpiece as a German cultural asset and prohibited the Sterns from taking it abroad. After obtaining permission from a Nazi official, a representative designated by the authorities auctioned the painting on the Sterns' behalf. However, the funds from the auction were held in a restricted account, which the authorities later took.

Later Transactions

Around 1948, or not long after, the artwork was brought to the United States and was acquired by a prominent figure, a member of the Astor family. Later, it was transferred through a commercial outlet to the institution, which then passed it on to Greek shipping magnate Goulandris and his wife, Mrs. Goulandris, in 1972.

The Greek couple set up the Basil & Elise Goulandris Foundation in 1979, which manages a museum in Athens where the masterpiece is currently exhibited.

Legal Arguments

BEG and a living relative of Basil Goulandris are identified in the suit. The lawsuit states that the defendants and its related entities have concealed and disguised the painting's ownership and location from the family.

Currently, the defendants continue to hide the manner and time the foundation came into control of the artwork; the family's possession of the artwork from several years; and the reality that the regime confiscated the canvas from the family, coerced the couple into parting with it via a regime representative, and took the funds of the sale.

Previous Legal Action

The descendants submitted a related lawsuit in the state of California in the year 2022, but it was dismissed in the following years. An legal challenge was also dismissed in May 2025.

Institution's Statement

The complaint contends that the institution's buying of the piece was approved by a curator, the museum's curator of Old Masters and one of the world's foremost experts on art theft during the Nazi era. The curator and the museum knew or should have known that the artwork had probably been looted by Nazis.

The institution responded that it takes seriously its ongoing pledge to handle claims from the Nazi period.

A spokesperson stated: Never during the museum's possession of the artwork was there any documentation that it had once belonged to the heirs – actually, that knowledge did not become known until many years after the artwork left the Met's possession.

The Met's sale of the artwork met the museum's strict criteria for deaccessioning – namely, it was noted that the work was considered to be of lesser quality than other works of the same type in the inventory. Even though The Met maintains its position that this work entered the collection and was removed properly and well within all guidelines and policies, the Met invites and will examine any new information that comes to light.

Foundation's Defense

William Charron representing the Goulandris Foundation stated: The institution is a esteemed foundation in the Greek capital. The effort to litigate and defame the organization and the family in the United States upon misleadingly incomplete allegations was already thrown out, on two occasions. We are certain it will be a third time.