A priceless 16th-century painting, depicting Madonna with the child and attributed to Italian painter Alessandro Turchi, is set to return to Poland after being looted by the Nazis during World War II. The painting is one of the 600 looted artworks that Poland has successfully recovered out of the 521 listed as the most valuable pieces of art taken from Occupied Poland between 1939 and 1945. Despite these recoveries, there are still approximately 66,000 war losses that remain to be reclaimed.
Discovery and Return
Polish authorities identified the painting during an auction held last January by Mainichi Auction Inc. in Japan. They promptly halted the auction and initiated negotiations for the painting’s return. The owner of the artwork agreed to return it to Poland, and after discussions with Japan, the painting was officially returned at the Polish Embassy in Tokyo. Notably, the return was carried out without any costs incurred.
Importance of Restitution
Poland’s Culture Minister, Piotr Glinski, emphasized the significance of returning looted art as “the best moral and ethical gesture” during negotiations. The Polish side consistently emphasizes the importance of restitution in such cases, underscoring the ethical and historical significance of recovering cultural items.
Art’s Journey and Origins
The path taken by Turchi’s ‘Madonna with Child’ to Japan remains unclear. However, records show that the painting was sold by an auction house in New York in the late 1990s. The artwork originally belonged to the collection of 18th-century Polish aristocrat Stanislaw Kostka-Potocki. It was listed among the artworks owned by another Polish aristocrat, Henryk Lubomirski, in the town of Przeworsk in 1823.
Wartime Art Looting
During World War II, it was a common practice for the Nazis to plunder valuable artworks, particularly those belonging to Jewish families. Kajetan Mühlmann, a Nazi official, oversaw the looting of various artworks. The recent return of the painting underscores Poland’s ongoing campaign to recover hundreds of thousands of missing artworks and cultural items stolen during the German and Soviet occupations in World War II.
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