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The descendants of a Jewish spouses have filed a lawsuit against The Metropolitan Museum of Art, claiming that a Van Gogh art piece was seized by the Nazis.

Historical Background

As stated in the court documents, Hedwig and Frederick Stern acquired the painting, titled Olive Picking, in the mid-1930s. A year after, they were obliged to escape their home in Munich, Germany prior to World War II.

The suit states that the Met, which obtained the artwork in 1956 for $125,000, must have realized it was probably confiscated property. The descendants are now demanding the restitution of the painting along with compensation.

Since the end of World War II, this plundered piece has been often and discreetly exchanged, bought and sold in and through NYC, states the court document.

The Sterns' Escape

Hedwig and Frederick Stern fled from their Munich home to America in 1936 with their offspring due to persecution by the Nazis. Yet, they were prevented from taking the artwork, which was painted by the Dutch post-impressionist in 1889.

Prior to their departure, Nazi authorities classified the artwork as a German cultural asset and banned the family from bringing it with them. After obtaining permission from a regime representative, a trustee assigned by the Nazis disposed of the piece on the family's behalf. Yet, the proceeds from the transaction were held in a restricted account, which the Nazis later confiscated.

Subsequent Ownership

In 1948, or not long after, the artwork entered NYC and was purchased by a prominent figure, one of America's wealthiest people. Later, it was exchanged through a gallery to the Met, which then passed it on to wealthy Greek businessman the magnate and his spouse, Elise, in the early 1970s.

Basil and Elise established the BEG in the late 1970s, which manages a institution in Athens, Greece where the painting is currently exhibited.

Court Allegations

BEG and a surviving nephew of Basil Goulandris are identified in the suit. The filing alleges that the Goulandris family and its affiliates have covered up the painting's ownership and whereabouts from the family.

Currently, the foundation continue to obscure the manner and time the institution came into control of the artwork; the Stern family's ownership of the masterpiece from the mid-1930s; and the truth that the Third Reich looted the Painting from the Stern family, pressured the Sterns into disposing of it via a trustee, and seized the funds of the deal.

Earlier Lawsuits

The family filed a related lawsuit in California in recently, but it was rejected in 2024. An appeal was also rejected in spring 2025.

Museum's Response

The lawsuit argues that the institution's buying of the painting was sanctioned by a curator, the institution's specialist of European paintings and a leading authority on art theft during the Nazi era. The curator and the museum must have known that the masterpiece had probably been looted by the regime.

The Met responded that it takes seriously its ongoing pledge to handle claims from the Nazi period.

A spokesperson remarked: Not once during the institution's custody of the piece was there any documentation that it had previously been owned to the Stern family – indeed, that information did not become known until a long time after the masterpiece left the Museum's collection.

The museum's disposal of the artwork met the museum's strict criteria for deaccessioning – in particular, it was noted that the artwork was deemed to be of lower caliber than additional artworks of the same type in the collection. Even though The Met respectfully stands by its stance that this artwork entered the inventory and was sold lawfully and well within all guidelines and policies, the Met welcomes and will consider any further evidence that is discovered.

Foundation's Defense

Legal counsel on behalf of the Goulandris Foundation commented: BEG is a renowned institution in Greece. The effort to sue and smear the institution and the family in the America upon misleadingly incomplete allegations was previously dismissed, twice. We are certain it will be once more.