Looted and Plundered Art

The „Deutsche Zentrum Kulturgutverluste“ (German Lost Art Foundation) has existed since the beginning of 2015 as a joint civil-law foundation based in Magdeburg. Its founders are the federal government, the states, and the leading municipal associations.

The ‘German Lost Art Foundation’ is the central point of contact, both nationally and internationally, for questions concerning cultural property displaced due to war and cultural property confiscated due to Nazi persecution.

The foundation’s primary task is to advise and financially support public institutions in their search for Nazi-looted art. In addition, it aims to develop a new service for private collectors and private museums that voluntarily adhere to the ‘Washington Principles.’ The foundation will further promote networking in provenance research, initiate and support national and international cooperation, and collaborate with university and non-university research institutions.

The foundation brings together the Magdeburg Coordination Office with its ‘Lost Art Internet Database’ (www.lostart.de) and the Office for Provenance Research under one roof. It supports the independent ‘Advisory Commission’ as well as other key actors in provenance research (e.g., non-profit associations of provenance researchers or the temporary ‘Taskforce Schwabing Art Trove’). The documentation and advisory tasks concerning cultural property displaced due to war, previously handled by the Magdeburg Coordination Office, will be continued. Furthermore, the foundation’s statutes create the basis for supporting the federal and state governments in continuing the project ‘Website Cultural Property Protection Germany and Database of Nationally Valuable Cultural Property.

A joint guideline joint guideline issued by the federal government, the states, and the leading municipal associations provides practical assistance primarily to museums, archives, libraries, and other affected institutions, offering orientation for implementing the ‘Washington Principles.’ Its aim is to further facilitate the identification and restitution of cultural property that was confiscated due to persecution during the Nazi era.

In addition to a brief overview for newcomers, it offers detailed guidance on achieving just and fair solutions and, for the first time, includes a list of key contact persons. It also takes into account the establishment of the arbitration body for Nazi-looted art. Accordingly, the guideline includes explanations of the arbitration procedure as well as the framework for evaluation by the arbitration panels. This framework contains criteria that enable just and fair solutions for cases that remain unresolved today.