Image: The painting to be returned, Henry Gibbs Aeneas and his Family Fleeing Burning Troy 1654
Spoliation Advisory Panel recommends restitution of 17th-century artwork by Henry Gibbs to heirs of a collector after discovering it was looted by Nazis.
A 17th-century artwork acquired by Tate is to be returned to its heirs following the conclusion that it had been looted by the Nazis.
A new Spoliation Advisory Panel report on Henry Gibbs’ Aeneas and his family fleeing Burning Troy includes new evidence on the painting’s history and recommends restitution to the heirs of Jewish Belgian Art Collector Samuel Hartveld.
The 17th century oil painting by Canterbury artist Henry Gibbs was initially purchased by Tate from Galerie Jan de Maere, Brussels in 1994.
In May 2024, the Spoliation Advisory Panel received a claim from trustees acting for the Sonia Klein Trust, which was established for Mr. Hartveld’s heirs, requesting the return of the painting by Henry Gibbs.
The Spoliation Advisory Panel resolves claims from people, or their heirs, who lost possession of cultural property during the Nazi era, which is now held in UK national collections.
Following extensive research by the trust’s legal representatives and others into how the family had come to lose the painting, it was identified as being in Tate’s collection.
The Spoliation Advisory Panel concluded that the legal and moral claims to the restitution of the painting were sufficiently compelling for them to advise the Secretary of State that the Sonia Klein Trust is entitled to its return.
Tate will now implement the report’s findings, recognising the Sonia Klein Trust for the heirs and great-grandchildren of Samuel Hartveld.
The family has been invited to Tate in the coming months to have the painting presented to them.
Tate said it welcomes the findings and recommendations made in the report and has “worked closely with the claimants and panel as new information on the artwork’s provenance has emerged.”
Tate’s director Maria Balshaw said restitution of the artwork was a “profound privilege”.
“Although the artwork’s provenance was extensively investigated when it was acquired in 1994, crucial facts concerning previous ownership of the painting were not known.
“I would like to thank the Sonia Klein Trust and the Spoliation Advisory Panel for their collaboration over the last year.”
Arts Minister Sir Chris Bryant called the restitution of the painting “the perfect example of the Spoliation Advisory Panel doing the work it was designed to do – helping to reunite families with their most treasured possessions that were looted by the Nazis.”
