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The heirs of a Jewish spouses have filed a lawsuit against The Met, asserting that a Van Gogh oil painting was seized by the Nazis.

Origins of the Dispute

Per the legal filing, the Stern couple acquired the artwork, titled Olive Harvest, in 1935. The following year, they were compelled to leave their dwelling in Munich, Germany just before World War II.

The suit states that the museum, which purchased the artwork in the 1950s for one hundred twenty-five thousand dollars, should have known it was likely confiscated property. The heirs are now seeking the return of the artwork along with compensation.

In the decades since WWII, this Nazi-looted painting has been repeatedly and secretly trafficked, bought and sold in and through NYC, claims the lawsuit.

Family's Flight

Hedwig and Frederick Stern departed from the city of Munich to California in 1936 with their large family due to the oppressive Nazi regime. Nevertheless, they were unable to bring the Van Gogh piece, which was painted by the celebrated artist in the late 19th century.

Before the family's emigration, the regime designated the masterpiece as a German cultural asset and banned the Sterns from exporting it. Once approved from a Third Reich agent, a trustee assigned by the Nazis auctioned the painting on the couple's behalf. Yet, the proceeds from the sale were placed in a frozen account, which the authorities later seized.

Later Transactions

By 1948, or not long after, the canvas entered New York and was purchased by a wealthy American, a member of the Astor family. Eventually, it was sold through a commercial outlet to the institution, which then sold it to Greek shipping magnate the magnate and his partner, Elise Goulandris, in 1972.

The Greek couple founded the Basil & Elise Goulandris Foundation in the late 1970s, which operates a museum in Athens where the masterpiece is currently exhibited.

Legal Arguments

The foundation and a surviving nephew of the magnate are listed as respondents. The legal action alleges that the defendants and its related entities have concealed and disguised the painting's ownership and whereabouts from the family.

Currently, the Goulandris Defendants continue to hide the circumstances the institution came into ownership of the Painting; the Stern family's ownership of the Painting from 1935 to 1938; and the facts that the Third Reich stole the canvas from the family, forced the Sterns into selling it via a regime representative, and took the funds of the transaction.

Prior Cases

The Stern heirs filed a related lawsuit in CA in recently, but it was thrown out in 2024. An further action was also rejected in May 2025.

Institution's Statement

The legal action contends that the institution's buying of the artwork was authorized by a curator, the institution's specialist of Old Masters and one of the world's foremost experts on Nazi-era looted art. Rousseau and the Met must have known that the masterpiece had probably been seized by the regime.

The Met said in a statement that it takes seriously its historical dedication to address issues related to WWII.

An official stated: Never during The Met's ownership of the painting was there any documentation that it had earlier been possessed to the family – actually, that knowledge did not become accessible until many years after the masterpiece left the Met's possession.

The Met's sale of the artwork met the Met's guidelines for deaccessioning – in particular, it was documented that the work was judged to be of inferior standard than other pieces of the comparable nature in the collection. Even though the institution upholds its view that this piece entered the holdings and was sold properly and well within all guidelines and policies, the museum invites and will examine any additional details that comes to light.

Goulandris Statement

Legal counsel representing the Goulandris Foundation said: BEG is a esteemed foundation in the Greek capital. The attempt to take legal action against the institution and the family in the United States upon deceptive and insufficient accusations was previously dismissed, twice. We are convinced it will be again.