German recluse gets art collection back while 'Nazi loot' investigation continues

Cornelius Gurlitt regains ownership of contentious hoard with onus on prosecutors to show works were stolen from owners

Philip Oltermann in Berlin

Public prosecutors in Augsburg have announced that they will release the artworks they seized from the home of reclusive collector Cornelius Gurlitt two years ago, making the 81-year-old once again the legal owner of the most contentious private collection in recent German history.

While the artworks' legal status may have changed, they are likely to remain in a secret location in Bavaria for now. Gurlitt signed an agreement with German authorities on Monday to allow a taskforce of experts to continue examining the providence of the works for another year – a process which is under increasing criticism for its slow progress and lack of transparency.

In 2012, 1,280 works including pieces by Picasso, Chagall and Matisse were seized from Gurlitt's Munich home by investigators who suspected some of them had originally been looted by the Nazis. When the find was made public in November last year, many hoped that any stolen works in the collection would eventually be returned to the descendants of the rightful owners, many of them Jewish collectors.

But five months later, the case has become caught up in bureaucracy. On Wednesday the public prosecutor in Augsburg had to give in to a complaint from Gurlitt's lawyers and release the hoard. While Gurlitt is still being investigated for possible tax evasion, he is now once again the rightful owner of the pictures, unless it can be proved that some of them count as looted art.

Stephan Holzinger, a spokesman for Gurlitt, said the ruling was a significant step in redeeming the collector's name: "This is a good day for Cornelius Gurlitt," Holzinger said in a statement. Around 500 artworks were originally suspected of having been looted by the Nazis, though Gurlitt's legal team puts the number much lower.

Holzinger told the Guardian that 300-350 works were owned by the Gurlitt family before Hitler came to power. Gurlitt's lawyers said they were aware of only seven restitution claims so far, including two claims for Henri Matisse's painting Seated Woman.

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http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/apr/09/german-art-nazi-loot-investigation