Latest news with #AeneasandhisFamilyFleeingBurningTroy
Telegraph
29-03-2025
- General
- Telegraph
Tate to return Henry Gibbs painting looted by Nazis
Tate Britain is to return a 17th-century painting to the family of a Jewish Belgian art collector after the work was looted by the Nazis. The Spoliation Advisory Panel, which examines requests for objects taken during the Nazi era to be returned from the UK's public collections, said the 1654 work Aeneas and his Family Fleeing Burning Troy by the English painter Henry Gibbs was 'looted as an act of racial persecution'. The heirs and great-grandchildren of Samuel Hartveld would receive the work, which the art collector left behind in Antwerp as he fled Belgium with his wife in 1940, the Government announced on Saturday. Hartveld survived the war, but was never reunited with his collection of paintings. Most of the works were looted and sold by the German authorities, with Hartveld and his family receiving none of the proceeds, the panel found. Some of his artworks may have changed hands several times since 1940 and are believed to be in galleries across Europe. The Gibbs painting was bought from Galerie Jan de Maere, an art gallery in Brussels, in 1994 by the Tate collection. In May 2024, the Sonia Klein Trust, established by Hartveld's heirs, launched a claim. 'Awful persecution' In a statement, the trustees said they were 'deeply grateful' for the decision to return the painting. 'This decision clearly acknowledges the awful Nazi persecution of Samuel Hartveld and that the 'clearly looted' painting belonged to Mr Hartveld, a Jewish Belgian art collector and dealer,' they added. 'The trustees acting for the Sonia Klein Trust further thank the staff at Tate Britain for working with the trustees and their legal representative Dr Hannes Hartung, to realise the return of this important painting by a highly regarded British painter.' The Sonia Klein Trust was started in 1986 by Sonia Klein, who was previously named in a will as the daughter of Hartveld's widow, Clara, who died in 1951. Her grandchildren Barbara, Daniel and Mark Floersheimer are trustees. Maria Balshaw, the director of Tate, said: 'It is a profound privilege to help reunite this work with its rightful heirs, and I am delighted to see the spoliation process working successfully to make this happen. 'Although the artwork's provenance was extensively investigated when it was acquired in 1994, crucial facts concerning previous ownership of the painting were not known. 'I would like to thank the Sonia Klein Trust and the Spoliation Advisory Panel for their collaboration over the last year. We now look forward to welcoming the family to Tate in the coming months and presenting the painting to them.' 'Absolutely the right decision' The Spoliation Advisory Panel said the 'legal and moral claims to restitution' for the heirs of someone 'forced to flee his homeland, leaving behind his property, books and art collection, are obvious', and recommended that it should be returned. Sir Chris Bryant, the arts minister, praised the panel for 'helping to reunite families with their most treasured possessions that were looted by the Nazis '. 'The decision to return the painting to the heirs of Samuel Hartveld and his wife is absolutely the right decision, which I welcome wholeheartedly,' he added. The painting, which is not on display at the Tate, is believed to be a commentary on exile during the English Civil War. It depicts scenes from The Aeneid, a Latin poem that tells the legendary story of Aeneas, a Trojan who fled the fall of Troy and travelled to Italy, where he became the ancestor of the Romans. The independent Spoliation Advisory Panel, which began in 2000, has received 23 claims, with 14 works being returned to the heirs of their former owners. The Holocaust (Return of Cultural Objects) Act 2009 allows national museums to return cultural objects, with the panel's recommendation and the arts minister's agreement.
The Guardian
29-03-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Henry Gibbs painting looted by Nazis to be returned to Jewish art dealer's family
A 17th-century painting by Henry Gibbs that was looted by the Nazis and has been in the Tate collection in the UK for the past 31 years is to be returned to the descendants of a Jewish art collector. Aeneas and his Family Fleeing Burning Troy was stolen by the Nazis from a gallery in Antwerp, Belgium, after its owner, Samuel Hartveld, was forced to flee in May 1940, eight months after the start of the second world war. It will be returned to Hartveld's great-grandchildren after a decision by the Spoliation Advisory Panel, which considers claims regarding Nazi-looted artworks now in a UK public collection. The 1654 painting depicts scenes from The Aeneid, a poem telling the legendary story of Aeneas, a Trojan who fled the fall of Troy and travelled to Italy, where he became the ancestor of the Romans. The painting shows Aeneas trying to rescue his family from the burning city. Chris Bryant, the arts minister, said the return of the painting was the 'perfect example' of what the panel was intended to do – 'helping to reunite families with their most treasured possessions that were looted by the Nazis'. Since the independent panel was established by the government in 2000 it has received 23 claims, with 14 works returned to the heirs of their former owners. When Hartveld, a successful art dealer, and his wife, Clara Meiboom, fled Antwerp for New York, they were forced to leave behind treasured possessions. The Henry Gibbs painting was one of 66 in his flourishing gallery in the city. The couple's son, Adelin Hartveld, remained in Belgium and joined the resistance. He was caught and later executed by the Nazis. Hartveld and his wife survived the war, but the collector was never reunited with his paintings. Most were looted and sold by the German authorities, and some are now believed to be in galleries across Europe after changing hands several times. The Henry Gibbs painting was bought by the Tate collection from Galerie Jan de Maere in Brussels. Two of Hartveld's three great-grandchildren submitted a claim for restitution in May 2024 via a trust set up in the name of their mother, Sonia Klein. The panel's report said: 'The legal and moral claims to restitution of this painting by the great-grandchildren and heirs of Samuel Hartveld, who was forced to flee his homeland, leaving behind his property, books and art collection, are obvious. The property, library and the paintings in his gallery were looted as an act of racial persecution.' The panel said Tate had not disputed the claim, and its response had been 'open and honourable'. Maria Balshaw, Tate's director, said: 'It is a profound privilege to help reunite this work with its rightful heirs … Although the artwork's provenance was extensively investigated when it was acquired in 1994, crucial facts concerning previous ownership of the painting were not known.' The trustees of the Sonia Klein Trust said: 'This decision clearly acknowledges the awful Nazi persecution of Samuel Hartveld and that the 'clearly looted' painting belonged to Mr Hartveld, a Jewish Belgian art collector and dealer.'
Yahoo
29-03-2025
- Yahoo
Britain to return artwork stolen by Nazis to Jewish family
By Sachin Ravikumar LONDON (Reuters) - A 17th-century painting looted by the Nazis in 1940 from a Jewish art collector in Belgium will be returned to his descendants after spending three decades in a London gallery, the British government said on Saturday. Samuel Hartveld and his wife were among those escaping Nazi persecution when they left Antwerp, leaving behind a number of belongings including the oil-on-canvas work "Aeneas and his Family Fleeing Burning Troy". But, following a review by a British advisory body that looks into claims of Nazi theft, the government ordered the painting to be returned to Hartveld's heirs and great-grandchildren. The 1654 artwork by English painter Henry Gibbs depicts the mythological story of Aeneas, a Trojan hero, escaping with his family after the Greeks invade Troy using the trickery of the Trojan Horse. Bought by London's Tate Britain gallery in 1994, the painting will change hands once again after the independent Spoliation Advisory Panel approved its repatriation following a review that began last May. The 10-member panel was set up in 2000 to consider claims from anyone of lost cultural property during the Nazi era that is now in a British public collection. "The property, library and the paintings in (Hartveld's) gallery were looted as an act of racial persecution," the panel said in its recommendation, adding that the legal and moral arguments for returning the painting were "obvious". A 2009 law allows British institutions to return objects related to the Holocaust and the Nazi era, if the arts minister agrees with the panel's recommendation. But other laws forbid Britain's biggest museums from permanently returning objects, many of which have long faced foreign repatriation demands on the grounds they were looted or forcibly taken during British colonial rule.
Reuters
29-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Reuters
Britain to return artwork stolen by Nazis to Jewish family
LONDON, March 29 (Reuters) - A 17th-century painting looted by the Nazis in 1940 from a Jewish art collector in Belgium will be returned to his descendants after spending three decades in a London gallery, the British government said on Saturday. Samuel Hartveld and his wife were among those escaping Nazi persecution when they left Antwerp, leaving behind a number of belongings including the oil-on-canvas work "Aeneas and his Family Fleeing Burning Troy". But, following a review by a British advisory body that looks into claims of Nazi theft, the government ordered the painting to be returned to Hartveld's heirs and great-grandchildren. The 1654 artwork by English painter Henry Gibbs depicts the mythological story of Aeneas, a Trojan hero, escaping with his family after the Greeks invade Troy using the trickery of the Trojan Horse. Bought by London's Tate Britain gallery in 1994, the painting will change hands once again after the independent Spoliation Advisory Panel approved its repatriation following a review that began last May. The 10-member panel was set up in 2000 to consider claims from anyone of lost cultural property during the Nazi era that is now in a British public collection. "The property, library and the paintings in (Hartveld's) gallery were looted as an act of racial persecution," the panel said in its recommendation, adding that the legal and moral arguments for returning the painting were "obvious". A 2009 law allows British institutions to return objects related to the Holocaust and the Nazi era, if the arts minister agrees with the panel's recommendation. But other laws forbid Britain's biggest museums from permanently returning objects, many of which have long faced foreign repatriation demands on the grounds they were looted or forcibly taken during British colonial rule.
