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The family members of a Jewish spouses have brought a case against The Metropolitan Museum of Art, claiming that a Van Gogh art piece was seized by the Third Reich.

Case History

As stated in the legal filing, Frederick and Hedwig Stern purchased the painting, titled Olive Harvest, in the mid-1930s. A year after, they were obliged to escape their residence in Munich, Germany just before WWII.

The legal action argues that the Met, which purchased the masterpiece in the 1950s for $125,000, ought to have been aware it was almost certainly stolen property. The family are now demanding the restitution of the canvas along with financial restitution.

Since the end of the war, this Nazi-looted painting has been repeatedly and secretly trafficked, bought and sold in and through New York, claims the court document.

The Sterns' Escape

The Stern family departed from their Munich home to California in the late 1930s with their six children due to the oppressive Nazi regime. Nevertheless, they were unable to bring the painting, which was painted by the Dutch post-impressionist in the late 19th century.

Prior to their departure, the regime classified the painting as German cultural property and forbade the Sterns from bringing it with them. After obtaining permission from a Nazi official, a representative assigned by the Nazis disposed of the painting on the couple's behalf. But, the money from the transaction were held in a restricted account, which the regime later took.

Subsequent Ownership

Around 1948, or not long after, the painting entered New York and was bought by a wealthy American, a member of the Astor family. Later, it was exchanged through a commercial outlet to the museum, which then transferred it to wealthy Greek businessman Basil Goulandris and his spouse, Elise, in the early 1970s.

Basil and Elise founded the Basil & Elise Goulandris Foundation in 1979, which manages a gallery in the Greek capital where the artwork is currently exhibited.

Court Allegations

The foundation and a surviving nephew of the magnate are named as defendants. The filing claims that the Goulandris family and its related entities have covered up the masterpiece's history and current place from the heirs.

Even now, the defendants continue to hide how and when the institution came into ownership of the Painting; the couple's ownership of the masterpiece from several years; and the facts that the Nazis confiscated the artwork from the Stern family, pressured the couple into disposing of it via a regime representative, and confiscated the money of the transaction.

Earlier Lawsuits

The descendants submitted a comparable case in the state of California in the year 2022, but it was thrown out in 2024. An appeal was also rejected in spring 2025.

Museum's Response

The lawsuit contends that the museum's acquisition of the painting was sanctioned by Theodore Rousseau Jr, the Met's authority of Old Masters and a renowned specialist on Nazi art looting. The institution and its expert must have known that the masterpiece had probably been looted by Nazis.

The institution said in a statement that it is committed to its longstanding commitment to address issues related to WWII.

A spokesperson commented: At no time during The Met's ownership of the artwork was there any evidence that it had previously been owned to the heirs – actually, that information did not become accessible until several decades after the painting left the institution's holdings.

The institution's deaccessioning of the Van Gogh met the institution's rigorous standards for removal from collection – specifically, it was noted that the artwork was deemed to be of inferior standard than additional artworks of the comparable nature in the collection. While The Met respectfully stands by its stance that this artwork entered the collection and was removed lawfully and well within all rules and regulations, the Met invites and will examine any additional details that is discovered.

BEG's Response

A lawyer representing the foundation stated: The institution is a renowned institution in Athens. The action to take legal action against the Foundation and the Goulandris family in the America upon deceptive and insufficient accusations was earlier rejected, multiple times. We are certain it will be again.