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3w ago

Ohio Auction House Pulls Two Bosschaert Still Lifes Linked to Nazi Looting

Provenance markings connect the works to the Schloss family, prompting a push to transfer custody.

Two paintings believed to be by Ambrosius Bosschaert recovered by the Monuments Men and Women Foundation. (Courtesy Monuments Men and Women Foundation)
The paintings are pictured in a directory of property looted in France between 1939 and 1945.

Overview

  • The Monuments Men and Women Foundation acted on a tip, documented provenance within 48 hours, inspected the paintings, and secured Apple Tree Auction Center’s cooperation to halt the Newark, Ohio sale.
  • The floral still lifes on copper, each about 8 by 5 inches, bear German inventory numbers “S 16” and “S 17” linking them to the Schloss collection seized in 1943.
  • Archival records place the paintings in Munich at Hitler’s headquarters after the seizure, with their whereabouts unknown for decades thereafter.
  • Apple Tree had listed the works as unclaimed property from abandoned Texas safe-deposit boxes, and online bids had reached $3,250 and $225 before withdrawal.
  • The foundation has contacted the Schloss heirs’ attorney and is seeking the bank’s identity to arrange custody transfer, with authentication and any valuation still preliminary.