Current:Home > FinanceMuseum in Switzerland to pull famous paintings by Monet, van Gogh over Nazi looting fears-LoTradeCoin
Museum in Switzerland to pull famous paintings by Monet, van Gogh over Nazi looting fears
View Date:2024-12-23 22:54:36
A museum in Switzerland is set to remove five famous paintings from one of its exhibitions while it investigates whether they were looted by the Nazis.
The Kunsthaus Zurich Museum said the decision to remove the paintings comes after the publication of new guidelines aimed at dealing with the art pieces that have still not been returned to the families they were stolen from during World War II.
The pieces are part of the Emil Bührle Collection, which was named after a German-born arms dealer who made his fortune during World War II by making and selling weapons to the Nazis.
The pieces under investigation are "Jardin de Monet à Giverny" by Claude Monet, "Portrait of the Sculptor Louis-Joseph" by Gustave Courbet, "Georges-Henri Manuel" by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, "The Old Tower" by Vincent van Gogh, and "La route montante" by Paul Gauguin.
The foundation board for the Emil Bührle Collection said in a statement it was "committed to seeking a fair and equitable solution for these works with the legal successors of the former owners, following best practices."
Earlier this year, 20 countries including Switzerland agreed to new best practices from the U.S. State Department about how to deal with Nazi-looted art. The guidelines were issued to mark the 25th anniversary of the 1998 Washington Conference Principles, which focused on making restitution for items that were either stolen or forcibly sold.
Stuart Eizenstat, the U.S. Secretary of State's special advisor on Holocaust issues, said in March that as many as 600,000 artworks and millions of books and religious objects were stolen during World War II "with the same efficiency, brutality and scale as the Holocaust itself."
"The Holocaust was not only the greatest genocide in world history," he said during an address at the Holocaust Museum in Washington D.C. "It was also the greatest theft of property in history."
According to the CBS News partner BBC, the principles are an important resource for families seeking to recover looted art because, under Swiss law, no legal claims for restitution or compensation can be made today for works from the Bührle collection due to the statute of limitations.
A sixth work in the collection, "La Sultane" by Edouard Manet, also came under further scrutiny, but the foundation board said it did not believe the new guidelines applied to it and that the painting would be considered separately, the BBC reported.
"Due to the overall historical circumstances relating to the sale, the Foundation is prepared to offer a financial contribution to the estate of Max Silberberg in respect to the tragic destiny of the former owner," the foundation said.
Silberberg was a German Jewish industrialist whose art collection was sold at forced auctions by the Nazis. It is believed he was murdered at Auschwitz, a Nazi death camp during the Holocaust.
- In:
- World War II
- Holocaust
- Art
- Nazi
- Switzerland
veryGood! (33)
Related
- Get $103 Worth of Tatcha Skincare for $43.98 + 70% Off Flash Deals on Elemis, Josie Maran & More
- 3 teens arrested as suspects in the killing of a homeless man in Germany
- Brie Larson's 'Lessons in Chemistry': The biggest changes between the book and TV show
- Probe finds ‘serious failings’ in way British politician Nigel Farage had his bank account closed
- He failed as a service dog. But that didn't stop him from joining the police force
- New USPS address change policy customers should know about
- Andy Cohen Details Weird Interview With Britney Spears During Her Conservatorship
- 2 bodies found in Vermont were missing Massachusetts men and were shot in the head, police say
- California Gov. Gavin Newsom will spend part of week in DC as he tries to Trump-proof state policies
- Captured: 1 of 4 inmates who escaped Georgia jail through cut fence arrested 50 miles away
Ranking
- Mike Tyson concedes the role of villain to young foe in 58-year-old’s fight with Jake Paul
- Pete Davidson, John Mulaney postpone comedy shows in Maine after mass killing: 'Devastated'
- These Secrets About the Halloween Franchise Are Pure Pumpkin Spice
- Is ConocoPhillips Looking to Expand its Controversial Arctic Oil Project?
- McDonald's Version: New Bestie Bundle meals celebrate Swiftie friendship bracelets
- 2 bodies found in Vermont were missing Massachusetts men and were shot in the head, police say
- A spider web of Hamas tunnels in Gaza Strip raises risks for an Israeli ground offensive
- War-weary mothers, wives and children of Ukrainian soldiers demand a cap on military service time
Recommendation
-
John Krasinski Details Moment He Knew Wife Emily Blunt Was “the One”
-
Taylor Swift Slams Sexualization of Her Female Friendships in 1989 (Taylor's Version) Prologue
-
Captured: 1 of 4 inmates who escaped Georgia jail through cut fence arrested 50 miles away
-
Maine shooting press conference: Watch officials share updates on search for Robert Card
-
Lunchables get early dismissal: Kraft Heinz pulls the iconic snack from school lunches
-
On Halloween, here's how to dress up as earth's scariest critter — with minimal prep
-
Rush hour earthquake jolts San Francisco, second in region in 10 days
-
New York City sets up office to give migrants one-way tickets out of town