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The family members of a Jewish spouses have filed a lawsuit against New York's Metropolitan Museum, asserting that a Van Gogh oil painting was looted by the Nazis.

Origins of the Dispute

Per the court documents, the Stern couple purchased the painting, titled Olive Harvest, in the mid-1930s. The following year, they were obliged to escape their residence in Munich, Germany prior to World War II.

The complaint argues that the institution, which obtained the painting in 1956 for one hundred twenty-five thousand dollars, should have known it was likely stolen property. The heirs are now requesting the restitution of the painting along with damages.

Following the war, this Nazi-looted painting has been often and discreetly exchanged, acquired and disposed of in and through New York, states the court document.

Forced Emigration

Hedwig and Frederick Stern fled from the city of Munich to the United States in 1936 with their offspring due to Nazi persecution. Nevertheless, they were unable to bring the Van Gogh piece, which was produced by the renowned Dutch in the late 19th century.

Prior to their departure, Nazi authorities designated the artwork as property of the state and forbade the family from taking it abroad. Once approved from a Nazi official, a trustee appointed by the Nazis sold the piece on the couple's behalf. However, the funds from the sale were deposited in a blocked account, which the Nazis later confiscated.

Later Transactions

Around 1948, or not long after, the artwork arrived in NYC and was acquired by a wealthy American, among the richest individuals in the US. Subsequently, it was transferred through a commercial outlet to the museum, which then transferred it to prominent shipowner the magnate and his spouse, Elise Goulandris, in 1972.

The Greek couple set up the Goulandris Foundation in 1979, which manages a museum in Athens, Greece where the artwork is currently on display.

Court Allegations

The foundation and a living relative of the magnate are named as defendants. The filing claims that the Goulandris family and its associated organizations have concealed and disguised the masterpiece's history and whereabouts from the plaintiffs.

Currently, the Goulandris Defendants continue to conceal the manner and time the institution came into possession of the piece; the couple's ownership of the masterpiece from 1935 to 1938; and the facts that the Nazis confiscated the Painting from the heirs, forced the couple into disposing of it via a trustee, and confiscated the proceeds of the sale.

Previous Legal Action

The family filed a related lawsuit in CA in the year 2022, but it was thrown out in the following years. An further action was also denied in spring 2025.

Institution's Statement

The lawsuit states that the museum's acquisition of the artwork was authorized by the museum's expert, the Met's authority of European art and a renowned specialist on art theft during the Nazi era. The institution and its expert were aware or ought to have been aware that the Painting had almost certainly been seized by Nazis.

The museum responded that it takes seriously its longstanding commitment to handle Nazi-era claims.

A spokesperson stated: At no time during the institution's custody of the piece was there any documentation that it had once belonged to the Stern family – indeed, that information did not become known until many years after the artwork left the Museum's collection.

The museum's disposal of Olive Picking met the institution's rigorous standards for removal from collection – namely, it was recorded that the artwork was considered to be of inferior standard than other works of the similar kind in the holdings. Although The Met respectfully stands by its view that this piece entered the inventory and was sold lawfully and well within all rules and regulations, the Met invites and will examine any further evidence that emerges.

Foundation's Defense

A lawyer on behalf of the foundation stated: The Goulandris Foundation is a esteemed foundation in Athens. The effort to take legal action against the Foundation and the family in the US upon misleadingly incomplete allegations was already thrown out, multiple times. We are confident it will be once more.