Swiss Museum Will Accept Uncontested Artworks from Gurlitt's Hoard
- October 13, 2014 16:42
A Swiss art museum will accept artworks from the bequest of Cornelius Gurlitt, the reclusive German hoarder who died in May. Worth an estimated 1 billion euros, Gurlitt's collection includes artworks taken from Jewish owners, and others, by the Nazi regime during World War II.
Bitter that Bavarian officials confiscated his collection in 2012, after decades spent living with it since his art-dealing father died, Gurlitt left the entire trove of some 1,400 works to the Bern Art Museum. The institution says it will only accept works that are free of restitution claims, the Sonntagszeitung reported.
"According to well informed sources, the meeting of the museum's board of trustees on November 26 will just sign off on the already detailed agreement," reports the Swiss paper.
A task force of German government-appointed researchers have been given until spring 2015 to review provenance and any claims on the Gurlitt collection.
![Peter Paul Rubens (Flemish, 1577–1640), After Titian (Tiziano Vecelli) (Italian [Venetian], c. 1488–1576), Rape of Europa, 1628–29. Oil on canvas, 71 7/8 x 79 3/8 in.](/images/c/e2/2e/Jan20_Rape_of_Europa100x100_c.jpg "Peter Paul Rubens (Flemish, 1577–1640), After Titian (Tiziano Vecelli) (Italian [Venetian], c. 1488–1576), Rape of Europa, 1628–29. Oil on canvas, 71 7/8 x 79 3/8 in.")
