1933 Photo Resolves Nazi Looted Art Case at Bavarian National Museum

The Bavarian National Museum is set to return two reliefs from the late 15th century to the descendants of Jakob Goldschmidt, a Jewish banker from Berlin, after confirming they were stolen during the Nazi era. Crafted between 1480 and 1490, these reliefs illustrate a donor family from Nuremberg and were obtained in 2023 from the Bollert collection. Research into their provenance established their connection to Goldschmidt (1882–1955), a prominent banker during the Weimar Republic. A photograph from 1933 captures the reliefs in Goldschmidt's villa in Berlin. Following the Nazi rise to power in 1933, Goldschmidt escaped to Switzerland and New York in 1936, abandoning his belongings. The museum classified the acquisition as related to Nazi persecution, in line with the Washington Principles. Goldschmidt's heirs have successfully reclaimed other looted artworks in the past.