Nazi Looted Art
Last year, German authorities found a stash of over 1,400 Nazi-looted artworks in a Munich apartment. The owner of the apartment is Cornelius Gurlitt, who is the son of one of Adolph Hitler’s personal art dealers. Despite popular conceptions of morality and justice, Gurlitt may get to keep the works under German law. He seems to have legally inherited the works from his father and, in Germany, the doctrine of adverse possession applies to artworks. Therefore, the statue of limitations has long passed for any rightful owner to bring a claim against Gurlitt. Naturally, the subject of the Holocaust and Nazi transgressions is inherently sensitive, especially in Germany, therefore it will be very interesting to see how the government handles this situation.