It was reported that up to a hundred missing art works by modern and old masters have emerged at the Austrian country home of Cornelius Gurlitt, the son of a prominent Nazi German art dealer. This is the culprit that was found in 2012 with hundreds of paintings believed plundered by the Nazis.
The works were uncovered in Salzburg and are reported to include paintings by Matisse, Chagall, Monet, Picasso as well as a cache of German Expressionist works. A spokesman for Mr Gurlitt, who is in his 80s, said experts were examining records to see if they matched works on data bases documenting stolen art, during the Nazi era. “After an initial assessment, suspicion is not confirmed,” Stated; Stephan Holzinger, spoke person for Mr Gurtitt. He added that the new paintings and works on paper had been viewed on Monday.
In 2012 more than 1,400 art works, estimated to be worth $1.35bn (£846m), were discovered in Mr Gurlitt’s apartment in Munich. But details of the find only came to light until last year, after the find was revealed by the press. The works were discovered apparently during a routine stop and search at the Swiss boarder. Tens of thousands of Euros were discovered in a briefcase which led the police to investigate Mr Gurlitt’s rundown apartment. The German authorities have been criticised for keeping the original discovery in Munich quiet for over 18 months.
It became clear last autumn that hundreds of paintings, prints and drawings believed to have been looted by the Nazis, with the aid of Mr Gurlitt’s late father Hildebrand, an art dealer who sold paintings confiscated or bought by the Third Reich, remained in the possession of the art dealers son. A lawyer, Christoph Edel, who is acting for Mr Gurlitt, has arranged for a guard to protect the works found at the collector’s Salzburg home from theft. The state prosecutor in Augsburg who is handling the tax investigation in Munich had no further comment to make on the latest revelations. Officials in Austria said that they had no knowledge of the case. “No warrant or search warrant has been ordered by us,” a spokesman for the Salzburg public prosecutor told the Austrian Press Agency.