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The family members of a Jewish pair have initiated legal proceedings against The Met, claiming that a Vincent van Gogh canvas was looted by the Nazis.

Historical Background

As stated in the lawsuit, the Stern couple bought the artwork, titled Olive Harvest, in the year 1935. A year after, they were compelled to leave their dwelling in Munich, Germany on the eve of WWII.

The legal action argues that the museum, which obtained the artwork in 1956 for a significant sum, ought to have been aware it was almost certainly stolen property. The family are now seeking the repatriation of the painting along with compensation.

Since the end of World War II, this Nazi-looted painting has been frequently and covertly traded, acquired and disposed of in and through NYC, alleges the lawsuit.

The Sterns' Escape

Hedwig and Frederick Stern departed from the city of Munich to America in the late 1930s with their six children due to Nazi persecution. However, they were unable to bring the painting, which was painted by the renowned Dutch in 1889.

Before the family's emigration, the regime designated the painting as a German cultural asset and banned the family from bringing it with them. After obtaining permission from a regime representative, a trustee designated by the authorities auctioned the painting on the couple's behalf. However, the money from the transaction were held in a blocked account, which the Nazis later seized.

Post-War History

By 1948, or shortly after, the artwork was brought to NYC and was purchased by Vincent Astor, among the richest individuals in the US. Later, it was transferred through a art dealer to the institution, which then sold it to Greek shipping magnate Basil Goulandris and his wife, Elise, in 1972.

The Goulandris pair established the Goulandris Foundation in 1979, which runs a gallery in the Greek capital where the painting is currently on display.

Court Allegations

The foundation and a surviving nephew of the magnate are identified in the suit. The lawsuit states that the family and its related entities have covered up the painting's ownership and whereabouts from the plaintiffs.

Even now, the Goulandris Defendants continue to conceal the circumstances the foundation came into ownership of the piece; the couple's ownership of the Painting from 1935 to 1938; and the truth that the Nazis looted the canvas from the heirs, forced the family into disposing of it via a trustee, and confiscated the funds of the deal.

Previous Legal Action

The Stern heirs submitted a similar complaint in California in the year 2022, but it was dismissed in the following years. An appeal was also denied in May 2025.

The Met's Position

The complaint states that the institution's buying of the artwork was sanctioned by a curator, the museum's curator of European paintings and a leading authority on Nazi-era looted art. Rousseau and the Met knew or should have known that the masterpiece had almost certainly been seized by Nazis.

The institution responded that it prioritizes its longstanding commitment to handle claims from the Nazi period.

A spokesperson stated: At no time during the museum's possession of the artwork was there any evidence that it had earlier been possessed to the family – in fact, that data did not become known until several decades after the painting left the Met's possession.

The museum's disposal of the artwork met the institution's rigorous standards for disposal – specifically, it was recorded that the piece was deemed to be of inferior standard than other works of the same type in the collection. Although The Met respectfully stands by its stance that this work entered the holdings and was removed properly and well within all rules and regulations, the museum invites and will examine any further evidence that emerges.

BEG's Response

William Charron on behalf of BEG said: The institution is a renowned institution in Athens. The action to take legal action against the Foundation and the family in the United States upon misleadingly incomplete allegations was earlier rejected, twice. We are convinced it will be a third time.