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The heirs of a Jewish couple have brought a case against The Met, alleging that a Vincent van Gogh oil painting was stolen by Nazi forces.

Historical Background

According to the lawsuit, Frederick and Hedwig Stern acquired the painting, titled Olive Harvest, in the mid-1930s. Just one year later, they were obliged to escape their home in Munich, Germany prior to World War II.

The complaint argues that the institution, which purchased the masterpiece in the mid-1950s for one hundred twenty-five thousand dollars, should have known it was likely stolen property. The heirs are now demanding the restitution of the canvas along with compensation.

In the decades since WWII, this Nazi-looted painting has been repeatedly and secretly trafficked, bought and sold in and through New York, states the court document.

Family's Flight

Hedwig and Frederick Stern departed from Munich to California in 1936 with their six children due to the oppressive Nazi regime. However, they were prevented from taking the Van Gogh piece, which was painted by the renowned Dutch in the late 19th century.

Before the family's emigration, the Nazi government declared the painting as German cultural property and forbade the family from taking it abroad. Once approved from a Nazi official, a agent designated by the regime auctioned the painting on the family's behalf. Yet, the funds from the sale were placed in a frozen account, which the authorities later took.

Post-War History

In 1948, or not long after, the canvas was brought to NYC and was acquired by a wealthy American, a member of the Astor family. Subsequently, it was sold through a commercial outlet to the museum, which then transferred it to Greek shipping magnate Goulandris and his spouse, Elise, in 1972.

The Goulandris pair founded the Basil & Elise Goulandris Foundation in the late 1970s, which operates a museum in Athens where the masterpiece is currently exhibited.

Court Allegations

The institution and a family member of Basil Goulandris are identified in the suit. The filing states that the family and its affiliates have covered up the painting's ownership and current place from the heirs.

Even now, the defendants continue to obscure the manner and time the foundation came into possession of the piece; the couple's ownership of the Painting from several years; and the truth that the Nazis stole the Painting from the family, pressured the Sterns into selling it via a trustee, and confiscated the proceeds of the deal.

Previous Legal Action

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

Museum's Response

The complaint contends that the institution's buying of the painting was approved by the museum's expert, the museum's curator of Old Masters and a leading authority on Nazi art looting. Rousseau and the Met knew or should have known that the masterpiece had probably been seized by the regime.

The museum said in a statement that it prioritizes its ongoing pledge to address claims from the Nazi period.

A spokesperson commented: Not once during The Met's ownership of the artwork was there any documentation that it had earlier been possessed to the heirs – actually, that information did not become accessible until several decades after the artwork left the Museum's collection.

The Met's sale of Olive Picking met the institution's rigorous standards for removal from collection – namely, it was noted that the piece was deemed to be of lower caliber than additional artworks of the same type in the collection. Although The Met maintains its view that this artwork entered the inventory and was sold lawfully and well within all standards and procedures, the institution invites and will examine any additional details that is discovered.

Foundation's Defense

Legal counsel acting for the Goulandris Foundation commented: BEG is a renowned institution in Greece. The effort to take legal action against the organization and the family in the America upon misleadingly incomplete allegations was earlier rejected, multiple times. We are certain it will be once more.