Kunstmuseum Bern, the inheritor of the Gurlitt collection. Photo courtesy of Wikimedia

In February 2012, German authorities seized a collection of more than 1,500 artworks, worth an estimated $1.2 billion, from Cornelius Gurlitt’s apartment in Munich, Germany and from his cottage in Salzburg, Austria. The collection, which includes works by Matisse, Liebermann, Dix, and Chagall, among others, was discovered during a raid on the properties resulting from a tax investigation. Gurlitt, who died on May 6, 2014 at age 81, named the Kunstmuseum Bern in Switzerland as the sole heir to the collection, setting off a whirlwind of legal activity leading up to the Bern’s November 26th deadline for accepting or rejecting the works.

Gurlitt’s father, Hildebrand Gurlitt, was one of four major dealers in “degenerate art” for the Nazi regime, primarily selling the artworks abroad for the party. Following the war, Gurlitt the elder reported that the art had been destroyed in the bombing of Dresden in 1945. This claim, coupled with the reclassification of the art as contraband during the war, has made the provenance of the pieces in the collection very difficult to ascertain. Hildebrand left the collection to Cornelius following his death from a car crash in 1956.

Cornelius Gurlitt, the former owner of the collection. Photo by Markus Hannich, courtesy of Artnet.com

The provenance of the works have been at the center of the controversy, with an estimated 600 works suspected to have been stolen from Jewish art dealers and collectors. A German task force, headed by attorney Ingeborg Berggreen-Merkel, is currently researching which pieces were stolen, and identifying the proper heirs to the works of art.

Though the museum has pledged to restore ownership of all stolen works to their rightful owners, there is still much controversy over the donation. Ronald Lauder, President of the World Jewish Congress, warned the Bern that accepting the trove would “open a Pandora’s Box,” of legal claims against them. Lauder elaborated, saying, “The people in Bern will harm themselves and their country if they take these paintings before their provenance is cleared up. They would become a museum of stolen art.”

Others have argued that the Bern’s acceptance of the inheritance would benefit all parties involved. German news site Neue Zurcher Zeitung reported that Gurlitt’s bequeathal falls under the guidelines of the Washington Principles, a 1998 code of ethics signed by forty-four countries which outlines how stolen Nazi art should be handled, specifically in terms of provenance and restitution. However, if the Bern decides not to accept, the collection would revert to Gurlitt’s relatives, creating a host of issues stemming from a lack of protocol regarding ownership of the remaining, yet-unclaimed artworks.

"Two Riders on the Beach" Max Liebermann, 1901. One of the paintings discovered in the Gurlitt collection. Photo courtesy of Wikimedia

Anne Webber, co-founder of the Commission for Looted Art in Europe (CLAE) stressed the importance of openness in the restitution process going forward by the museum as well as the German task force, saying, “With ownership, comes responsibility. If Bern accepts the Gurlitt collection, then it is essential that all research continue with greater transparency . . . Transparency is essential if people are to have confidence in the work of the task force.” With regard to that transparency, Webber also urged any involved parties to come forward, saying, “We are calling for a full investigation and are inviting dealers who disposed of the works, including to museums, to come forward.”

The deadline for the Kunstmuseum Bern’s decision to accept or reject the Gurlitt collection is November 26, 2014. The Museum is expected to release a public statement regarding its decision on Monday November 24, 2014. Updates about the Bern’s decision can be found on the English version of their website, HERE.