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Two Bronze Animal Heads – China and Pierre Bergé
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In February of 2009, Christie’s offered at auction two 18th-century bronze fountainheads – a rabbit and a rat – owned by the estate of Yves Saint Laurent and his longtime-partner Pierre Bergé. Stolen from the Old Summer Palace by British and French forces during the Second Opium War in 1860, the two heads’ sale provoked controversial international debate, inspiring a Chinese national to bid upon the bronzes at auction and refuse payment. In June of 2013, François-Henri Pinault, owner of Christie’s, returned to China the fountainheads in an effort to strengthen diplomatic and trade relations between France and China.
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Chagall Gouache – Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation and Lubell
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In 1993, the Guggenheim Foundation, Mrs. Rachel Lubell, and other interested parties reached a settlement regarding a Marc Chagall painting that had been stolen from the Museum and purchased by Mrs. Lubell almost thirty years prior. Though a trial court had originally held the Guggenheim’s suit seeking recovery was time-barred, the Appellate Division reversed the lower court’s decision and clarified New York’s “demand and refusal” rule. On remand, the parties settled just one day after the new trial began.
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Lighthouse With Rotating Beam – Flechtheim Heirs and Kunstmuseum Bonn
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The heirs of the art dealer and collector Alfred Flechtheim besought the Kunstmuseum Bonn for the restitution of the painting “Lighthouse With Rotating Beam” by Paul Adolf Seehaus, alleging that it was part of Alfred Flechtheim’s collection before he fled Nazi persecution. After consideration of the claim, the Museum decided to keep the painting, but agreed to reimburse the heirs for half its market value.
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Collection Varenne – Héritiers Varenne et Ville de Genève
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En 2008, un accord est conclu entre la Ville de Genève et les héritiers Varenne portant sur la collection « Varenne ». La Ville de Genève renonce à la donation « Varenne » initiale en échange notamment de CHF 30.000.000.
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Portrait of Wally – United States and Estate of Lea Bondi and Leopold Museum
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After having been taken from Lea Bondi, a Jew forced to flee Austria following the Anschluss, the painting “Portrait of Wally” by Egon Schiele was seized by the US Forces at the end of the war. The portrait was first returned by the US Restitution Division to the Austrian Federal Office for Preservation of Historical Monument (BDA).
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