microrobert
03-18-2013, 07:00 PM
France vows to step up efforts to return WWII stolen art
France on Monday vowed to step up efforts to return works of art stolen from Jews by the Nazis to the families of their rightful owners.
The pledge came on the eve of an official ceremony at which six 18th-century paintings will be returned to the descendants of Vienna-based industrialist Richard Neumann and another 17th-century work handed over to the family of Josef Wiener, a Prague banker who perished in the holocaust.
An estimated 2,000 works of art are currently held in trust by France's state museums pending identification of their owners.
Culture Minister Aurelie Filippetti said France would be taking a more active approach to identifying the rightful owners.
"Until now we have waited for inheritors or relatives to trigger research procedures," Filippetti said. "I want to introduce a more proactive approach under which France will seek the owners whether or not a formal request has been made."
http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/afp/130318/france-vows-step-efforts-return-wwii-stolen-art
France on Monday vowed to step up efforts to return works of art stolen from Jews by the Nazis to the families of their rightful owners.
The pledge came on the eve of an official ceremony at which six 18th-century paintings will be returned to the descendants of Vienna-based industrialist Richard Neumann and another 17th-century work handed over to the family of Josef Wiener, a Prague banker who perished in the holocaust.
An estimated 2,000 works of art are currently held in trust by France's state museums pending identification of their owners.
Culture Minister Aurelie Filippetti said France would be taking a more active approach to identifying the rightful owners.
"Until now we have waited for inheritors or relatives to trigger research procedures," Filippetti said. "I want to introduce a more proactive approach under which France will seek the owners whether or not a formal request has been made."
http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/afp/130318/france-vows-step-efforts-return-wwii-stolen-art