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The descendants of a Jewish couple have initiated legal proceedings against New York's Metropolitan Museum, asserting that a Van Gogh art piece was looted by Nazi forces.

Case History

As stated in the legal filing, Hedwig and Frederick Stern acquired the painting, titled Gathering Olives, in the mid-1930s. Just one year later, they were compelled to leave their home in Munich, Germany prior to WWII.

The complaint states that the institution, which acquired the masterpiece in the 1950s for one hundred twenty-five thousand dollars, ought to have been aware it was almost certainly stolen property. The descendants are now requesting the restitution of the canvas along with financial restitution.

Since the end of World War II, this stolen artwork has been often and discreetly exchanged, bought and sold in and through New York, alleges the lawsuit.

The Sterns' Escape

Hedwig and Frederick Stern fled from Munich to California in the late 1930s with their offspring due to Nazi persecution. Nevertheless, they were unable to bring the painting, which was painted by the Dutch post-impressionist in 1889.

Before they left, the Nazi government declared the masterpiece as a German cultural asset and banned the family from exporting it. Once approved from a regime representative, a representative designated by the regime sold the artwork on the couple's behalf. However, the funds from the sale were held in a restricted account, which the authorities later took.

Subsequent Ownership

Around 1948, or shortly after, the painting was brought to New York and was bought by Vincent Astor, one of America's wealthiest people. Subsequently, it was sold through a gallery to the Met, which then sold it to Greek shipping magnate Goulandris and his spouse, Elise Goulandris, in 1972.

The Goulandris pair established the Goulandris Foundation in the late 1970s, which runs a institution in Athens where the masterpiece is currently shown.

Claims and Defenses

The institution and a family member of Basil Goulandris are listed as respondents. The legal action states that the defendants and its affiliates have concealed and disguised the masterpiece's history and location from the family.

To this day, the foundation continue to obscure how and when the BEG came into possession of the Painting; the family's possession of the artwork from the mid-1930s; and the truth that the Third Reich confiscated the artwork from the Stern family, forced the family into disposing of it via a regime representative, and seized the proceeds of the transaction.

Earlier Lawsuits

The Stern heirs initiated a comparable case in the state of California in recently, but it was dismissed in 2024. An legal challenge was also denied in spring 2025.

Institution's Statement

The legal action contends that the institution's buying of the piece was approved by Theodore Rousseau Jr, the Met's authority of European art and a leading authority on art theft during the Nazi era. The curator and the museum knew or should have known that the artwork had likely been stolen by the Nazis.

The museum responded that it takes seriously its historical dedication to resolve claims from the Nazi period.

A spokesperson remarked: At no time during The Met's ownership of the painting was there any evidence that it had earlier been possessed to the family – indeed, that knowledge did not become accessible until a long time after the masterpiece left the Museum's collection.

The institution's deaccessioning of the Van Gogh met the institution's rigorous standards for removal from collection – in particular, it was documented that the work was judged to be of lower caliber than other pieces of the comparable nature in the collection. Even though the institution upholds its stance that this artwork entered the inventory and was sold legally and well within all rules and regulations, the institution invites and will examine any new information that is discovered.

BEG's Response

A lawyer acting for the Goulandris Foundation stated: BEG is a highly prestigious organization in the Greek capital. The attempt to take legal action against the organization and the family in the US upon misleadingly incomplete allegations was previously dismissed, multiple times. We are certain it will be a third time.