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The heirs of a Jewish pair have filed a lawsuit against The Met, claiming that a Vincent van Gogh art piece was stolen by Nazi forces.

Origins of the Dispute

As stated in the legal filing, Hedwig and Frederick Stern purchased the painting, titled Gathering Olives, in the mid-1930s. The following year, they were forced to flee their residence in Munich, Germany prior to WWII.

The complaint states that the Met, which acquired the artwork in the mid-1950s for a significant sum, should have known it was probably looted property. The heirs are now seeking the return of the artwork along with damages.

In the decades since WWII, this plundered piece has been repeatedly and secretly trafficked, bought and sold in and through New York, claims the court document.

Forced Emigration

Hedwig and Frederick Stern escaped from Munich to California in the late 1930s with their six children due to the oppressive Nazi regime. Yet, they were prevented from taking the painting, which was produced by the Dutch post-impressionist in the late 19th century.

Before they left, the regime designated the painting as German cultural property and prohibited the family from taking it abroad. Once approved from a Nazi official, a agent appointed by the Nazis disposed of the piece on the family's behalf. Yet, the funds from the auction were placed in a restricted account, which the authorities later seized.

Post-War History

By 1948, or not long after, the artwork was brought to the United States and was bought by Vincent Astor, a member of the Astor family. Subsequently, it was exchanged through a gallery to the museum, which then transferred it to prominent shipowner the magnate and his partner, Mrs. Goulandris, in 1972.

Basil and Elise set up the Goulandris Foundation in 1979, which manages a institution in Athens, Greece where the artwork is currently on display.

Court Allegations

The institution and a family member of the magnate are named as defendants. The lawsuit alleges that the defendants and its affiliates have hidden and obscured the painting's ownership and whereabouts from the family.

To this day, the defendants continue to obscure how and when the foundation came into ownership of the piece; the Stern family's ownership of the artwork from the mid-1930s; and the reality that the Nazis confiscated the Painting from the Stern family, pressured the Sterns into disposing of it via a trustee, and seized the money of the transaction.

Earlier Lawsuits

The Stern heirs submitted a similar complaint in CA in recently, but it was rejected in 2024. An appeal was also dismissed in spring 2025.

Institution's Statement

The legal action argues that the museum's acquisition of the painting was approved by Theodore Rousseau Jr, the Met's authority of Old Masters and a leading authority on Nazi-era looted art. Rousseau and the Met must have known that the artwork had probably been seized by Nazis.

The Met said in a statement that it takes seriously its historical dedication to address Nazi-era claims.

A representative commented: Not once during the institution's custody of the piece was there any documentation that it had previously been owned to the heirs – indeed, that data did not become accessible until several decades after the masterpiece left the Museum's collection.

The Met's sale of Olive Picking met the museum's strict criteria for deaccessioning – in particular, it was recorded that the work was considered to be of lower caliber than additional artworks of the similar kind in the inventory. Although The Met respectfully stands by its stance that this artwork entered the holdings and was removed legally and well within all standards and procedures, the Met invites and will examine any further evidence that is discovered.

BEG's Response

Legal counsel on behalf of the Goulandris Foundation said: The Goulandris Foundation is a esteemed foundation in Athens. The effort to litigate and defame the organization and the defendants in the United States upon deceptive and insufficient accusations was already thrown out, multiple times. We are confident it will be again.