Daughter of Nazi relinquishes looted painting to authorities

The daughter of Nazi official Friedrich Kadgien, Patricia Kadgien, has handed over a painting looted by her father to the Argentinian justice department until its ownership can be established, local media reported.

The artwork, A Lady’s Portrait by the 17th-century Italian master Giuseppe Ghislandi,  was confiscated by the Nazis as part of the collection of Jacques Goudstikker, an art dealer based in Amsterdam who died while trying to flee the German invasion in 1940.

The painting was spotted hanging in the living room of Ms Kadgien’s home when she listed it for sale through a local real estate agent. But when police went to the house in Mar del Plata last week, the painting had been replaced by a tapestry depicting horses, local newspaper La Nacion reported.

Both Kadgien and her husband were put under house arrest and charged with concealing a crime.

The painting, a portrait of the Contessa Colleoni, is on the international list of lost art and the official Dutch list of artworks looted by the Nazis.

The Argentine public prosecution office will investigate the ownership of the painting but it is unclear how long this will take.

The descendants of Goudstikker, who have successfully retrieved some  202 works of art back from the Dutch state in 2007, and who are also targeting private individuals, have said they will reclaim the painting.

“My search for the artworks owned by my father-in-law Jacques Goudstikker started at the end of the 90s and I won’t give up,” Marei von Saher, 81, told the AD. “My family aims to bring back every single artwork robbed from Jacques’ collection and restore his legacy.”