Post date: Nov 05, 2013 3:1:36 PM
German authorities say the trove of Nazi-looted art they had seized included works dating from the 16th century to the modern period by artists such as Canaletto, Courbet, Picasso, Chagall and Toulouse-Lautrec.
AUGSBURG, GERMANY (NOVEMBER 05, 2013) (REUTERS) - A trove of Nazi-looted art found in a Munich flat included works dating from the 16th century to the modern period from artists such as Canaletto, Courbet, Picasso, Chagall and Toulouse-Lautrec, German authorities said on Tuesday (November 5).
Customs officials discovered the roughly 1,400 art works during a search of the flat last year, said Siegfried Kloeble from the city's customs investigation office.
"When we investigated the matter we immediately noticed that these were classic modern works. Let me name a few of the artists: Max Liebermann, Max Beckmann, Otto Dix, Oskar Kokoschka, Henri Toulouse-Lautrec, August Macke, Emil Nolde, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Pablo Picasso, Carl Spitzweg, Marc Chagall, Renoir, Schmidt-Rottluff, Hofer, Macke."
"A total of 121 framed and 1,285 non-framed works, among them from famous artists, were seized," state prosecutor of Augsburg, Reinhard Nemetz told a news conference. "There were oil paintings, others in Indian ink, pencil, water colours, colour prints, other prints from artists like Max Liebermann and others."
Kloeble said media reports that authorities had failed to disclose the find for two years were wide of the mark and there had been no undue delay. He said that the the paintings were professionally stored and in a very good condition.
A Jewish group accused Germany on Monday (November 4) of moral complicity in concealment of stolen paintings after initial reports of the delay in disclosing the discovery of the huge trove of art.
The case poses a legal and moral minefield for authorities. The Nazi regime systematically plundered hundreds of thousands of art works from museums and individuals across Europe. An unknown number of works is still missing, and museums worldwide have held investigations into the origins of their exhibits.
Germany has faced criticism that the restitution process is too complicated and lacks sufficient funding.
Nemetz said there were no plans to publish a list of the works online.
Instead, he said the authorities would welcome it if people who suspected the trove may contain paintings that rightfully belonged to their ancestors came forward.
Meike Hoffmann, an expert on art the Nazis branded un-German or "degenerate" and removed from show in state museums, said the works of art were of an "extraordinary aesthetic quality" and of high scientific value.
"When you stand in front of works that were long considered lost, missing or destroyed, and you see them again, in a relatively good condition - a little bit dirty but not damaged - it's an incredible feeling of happiness," she said.
"They have an incredible artistic value. Many of the works were not at all known until now," she added.