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The family members of a Jewish couple have initiated legal proceedings against New York's Metropolitan Museum, alleging that a Van Gogh art piece was stolen by Nazi forces.

Origins of the Dispute

As stated in the legal filing, Hedwig and Frederick Stern purchased the piece, titled Olive Harvest, in the year 1935. Just one year later, they were obliged to escape their residence in Munich, Germany on the eve of World War II.

The legal action argues that the museum, which purchased the artwork in 1956 for a significant sum, should have known it was likely stolen property. The descendants are now demanding the return of the canvas along with damages.

Since the end of WWII, this stolen artwork has been frequently and covertly traded, acquired and disposed of in and through NYC, states the legal filing.

The Sterns' Escape

The Stern family fled from Munich to California in 1936 with their offspring due to Nazi persecution. However, they were unable to bring the painting, which was created by the Dutch post-impressionist in the late 19th century.

Prior to their departure, the regime declared the artwork as property of the state and forbade the couple from taking it abroad. Once approved from a Third Reich agent, a trustee appointed by the authorities sold the artwork on the Sterns' behalf. Yet, the money from the transaction were deposited in a blocked account, which the regime later took.

Later Transactions

By 1948, or soon after, the painting entered New York and was acquired by Vincent Astor, a member of the Astor family. Eventually, it was exchanged through a gallery to the institution, which then sold it to Greek shipping magnate Basil Goulandris and his spouse, Mrs. Goulandris, in the early 1970s.

The Greek couple set up the Basil & Elise Goulandris Foundation in the late 1970s, which operates a gallery in the Greek capital where the painting is currently on display.

Claims and Defenses

BEG and a surviving nephew of Goulandris are listed as respondents. The filing claims that the family and its related entities have hidden and obscured the artwork's provenance and whereabouts from the plaintiffs.

To this day, the Goulandris Defendants continue to hide the manner and time the institution came into possession of the Painting; the Stern family's ownership of the Painting from 1935 to 1938; and the reality that the Third Reich confiscated the artwork from the family, forced the Sterns into disposing of it via a regime representative, and confiscated the proceeds of the transaction.

Prior Cases

The Stern heirs submitted a comparable case in the state of California in the year 2022, but it was dismissed in the following years. An legal challenge was also denied in spring 2025.

The Met's Position

The lawsuit argues that the museum's acquisition of the artwork was authorized by a curator, the museum's curator of European paintings and one of the world's foremost experts on art theft during the Nazi era. Rousseau and the Met were aware or ought to have been aware that the Painting had probably been looted by the Nazis.

The Met responded that it prioritizes its ongoing pledge to address issues related to WWII.

A representative stated: At no time during the institution's custody of the piece was there any evidence that it had previously been owned to the family – in fact, that information did not become accessible until several decades after the artwork left the institution's holdings.

The institution's deaccessioning of the Van Gogh met the Met's guidelines for removal from collection – namely, it was recorded that the work was deemed to be of lower caliber than other pieces of the similar kind in the collection. Even though the institution maintains its view that this work entered the collection and was sold lawfully and well within all rules and regulations, the institution is open to and will review any further evidence that comes to light.

BEG's Response

William Charron acting for the Goulandris Foundation stated: The Goulandris Foundation is a renowned institution in Greece. The effort to sue and smear the Foundation and the Goulandris family in the America upon misleadingly incomplete allegations was previously dismissed, on two occasions. We are confident it will be again.