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The family members of a Jewish couple have filed a lawsuit against The Metropolitan Museum of Art, alleging that a Vincent van Gogh canvas was stolen by Nazi forces.

Origins of the Dispute

As stated in the legal filing, Frederick and Hedwig Stern acquired the artwork, titled Olive Picking, in 1935. The following year, they were compelled to leave their home in the German city of Munich just before WWII.

The legal action contends that the Met, which acquired the artwork in the mid-1950s for one hundred twenty-five thousand dollars, ought to have been aware it was likely stolen property. The heirs are now demanding the repatriation of the artwork along with financial restitution.

In the decades since the war, this stolen artwork has been repeatedly and secretly trafficked, purchased and sold in and through NYC, states the court document.

Forced Emigration

The Sterns escaped from the city of Munich to America in 1936 with their offspring due to the oppressive Nazi regime. Yet, they were prevented from taking the artwork, which was produced by the Dutch post-impressionist in 1889.

Prior to their departure, the regime classified the painting as property of the state and forbade the family from taking it abroad. Following authorization from a Third Reich agent, a representative assigned by the authorities sold the piece on the Sterns' behalf. Yet, the money from the sale were placed in a frozen account, which the authorities later seized.

Subsequent Ownership

In 1948, or not long after, the artwork entered NYC and was acquired by Vincent Astor, among the richest individuals in the US. Later, it was transferred through a art dealer to the Met, which then passed it on to Greek shipping magnate the magnate and his spouse, Elise Goulandris, in 1972.

The Goulandris pair established the BEG in the late 1970s, which operates a institution in Athens where the painting is currently on display.

Claims and Defenses

BEG and a family member of Goulandris are named as defendants. The lawsuit alleges that the defendants and its affiliates have hidden and obscured the artwork's provenance and whereabouts from the heirs.

Currently, the Goulandris Defendants continue to hide the manner and time the institution came into possession of the piece; the couple's ownership of the artwork from the mid-1930s; and the facts that the regime stole the Painting from the heirs, forced the family into parting with it via a regime representative, and took the funds of the transaction.

Prior Cases

The family submitted a related lawsuit in California in 2022, but it was rejected in 2024. An appeal was also dismissed in spring 2025.

Institution's Statement

The complaint states that the Met's purchase of the artwork was authorized by Theodore Rousseau Jr, the Met's authority of Old Masters and one of the world's foremost experts on Nazi-era looted art. The curator and the museum must have known that the artwork had almost certainly been stolen by the regime.

The Met issued a statement that it takes seriously its historical dedication to address claims from the Nazi period.

A spokesperson remarked: At no time during the institution's custody of the piece was there any record that it had earlier been possessed to the Stern family – actually, that information did not become accessible until a long time after the painting left the Museum's collection.

The museum's disposal of the Van Gogh met the Met's guidelines for disposal – namely, it was documented that the work was judged to be of lower caliber than other works of the comparable nature in the collection. Although the museum maintains its stance that this work entered the collection and was sold legally and well within all rules and regulations, the institution invites and will examine any further evidence that emerges.

BEG's Response

William Charron on behalf of BEG stated: The institution is a highly prestigious organization in Athens. The attempt to litigate and defame the organization and the family in the United States upon inaccurate and partial claims was already thrown out, multiple times. We are convinced it will be once more.