Tate Britain to Return Nazi-Looted Painting to Heirs of Jewish Collector
Tate Britain to return Aeneas and His Family Fleeing Burning Troy to heirs of Jewish collector Samuel Hartveld, looted by Nazis in WWII.
The heirs and great-grandchildren of Jewish Belgian art collector Samuel Hartveld are set to be reunited with a painting looted by the Nazis when he fled Antwerp during the Second World War in May 1940.
The artwork, Aeneas and His Family Fleeing Burning Troy, was created in 1654 by English artist Henry Gibbs and is currently held in the collection of Tate Britain.
Hartveld and his wife were forced to leave behind their most treasured possessions, including a collection of 66 paintings in their Antwerp gallery.
Among them was this narrative painting, which is believed to reflect the turmoil of the English Civil War. It depicts the Trojan hero Aeneas rescuing his family from the burning city of Troy, a story famously told in Virgil’s Aeneid and later seen as a symbol of survival and exile.
After surviving the war, Hartveld never recovered his collection. Many of his paintings were looted and sold by the German authorities, with proceeds never reaching him or his family.
Some of his artworks are believed to be in galleries across Europe. The painting by Henry Gibbs eventually surfaced in the Jan de Maere Gallery in Brussels and was purchased by Tate Britain in 1994 without knowledge of its origins.
The case was brought to the attention of the Spoliation Advisory Panel in May 2024 by the trustees of the Sonia Klein Trust, acting on behalf of Hartveld’s heirs. After extensive research, the panel concluded that the painting had been looted and should be returned. The decision was ratified by the UK government, and Tate Britain has welcomed the outcome.
Arts Minister Sir Chris Bryant described the case as a testament to the Spoliation Advisory Panel’s essential work in restoring looted cultural heritage.
He stated that returning the painting to Hartveld’s heirs was absolutely the right decision. Tate Britain’s director, Maria Balshaw, emphasised the museum’s commitment to justice and expressed gratitude to the Sonia Klein Trust and the panel for their collaboration.
She noted that although the painting’s provenance had been examined in 1994, key details about its looting had only recently come to light.
The trustees of the Sonia Klein Trust expressed deep appreciation for the panel’s efforts and for the cooperation of Tate Britain in realising the return of this significant artwork.
They also acknowledged the research of Geert Sels, author of Kunst voor das Reich, whose work helped uncover the story of Hartveld’s lost collection.
This restitution aligns with broader international efforts to return Nazi-looted artworks. The Holocaust (Return of Cultural Objects) Act 2009 allows UK national museums to return cultural objects where recommended by the Spoliation Advisory Panel and approved by the Arts Minister.
Similar initiatives exist in France, Germany, Austria, and the Netherlands, fostering collaboration in the ongoing effort to restore stolen cultural heritage.
Tate Britain looks forward to welcoming Hartveld’s descendants in the coming months to formally return Aeneas and His Family Fleeing Burning Troy to its rightful owners.
