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Portrait d’Isabelle d’Este – Cecchini c. Italie
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Dans le cadre d’une procédure pénale, le procureur du Tribunal de Pesaro (Italie) a adressé à la Suisse une demande d’entraide judiciaire portant sur un tableau attribué à Leonardo da Vinci qui aurait été transféré d’Italie en Suisse, par sa propriétaire, sans l’autorisation des autorités italiennes. Après avoir fait séquestrer le tableau, le Ministère public du Tessin ordonne la remise de ce dernier à l’Italie. La propriétaire de l’œuvre recourt contre cette décision jusqu’au Tribunal fédéral, qui casse la décision précédente.
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Ancient Coins – Ancient Coin Collectors Guild v. United States
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In an attempt to challenge import regulations in force in the United States (US), the Ancient Coin Collectors Guild (ACCG) imported into the US 23 ancient coins, which were seized by customs officials. The case was litigated from 2007 to 2019, with courts consistently deciding in favour of the US Government and the import restrictions remaining in place.
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Die Grosse Seestrasse in Wannsee – X. v. Switzerland
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The painting “Die Grosse Seestrasse in Wannsee” was bought in 1948 by François de Diesbach. After de Diesbach’s death, the painting was forgotten within the Swiss embassy. When the Swiss embassy decided to donate the painting to the Liebermann Villa, a distant relative of de Diesbach seized a Swiss court and claimed ownership over the painting. The High Court of the Canton of Bern ultimately held that the Swiss Confederation had acquired ownership over the painting.
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Portrait of Greta Moll – Moll Heirs v. National Gallery of London
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The “Portrait of Greta Moll” has been subject to a claim for return. The heirs of the painting’s subject argued the painting was stolen in the aftermath of the Second World War and claimed that the National Gallery of London did not purchase the work in good faith. The case has been heard in two courts of the United States.
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Nedjemankh and His Gilded Coffin – Metropolitan Museum of Art and Egypt
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The gilded Coffin of Nedjemankh, a priest of the ram-god Heryshef, was purchased in 2017 and exhibited in 2018 by the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Following an investigation by the Manhattan District Attorney’s office, the Met learned that the Coffin had been looted in 2011, during the Egyptian revolution. It also learned that it had received upon its purchase a false ownership history, fraudulent statements and fake documentation, including a forged 1971 Egyptian export license for the coffin. As such, the Met unconditionally returned the coffin to the Government of Egypt.
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Sevso Treasure – Lebanon et al. v. Marquess of Northampton
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The Sevso Treasure was consigned at Sotheby’s by the Marquess of Northampton in 1989. Sotheby’s released a press statement which said that the treasure would not be sold until all claims against it had been dealt with. Hungary bought seven pieces of the treasure in 2014, and a further seven pieces in 2017.
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Maori Panels – New Zealand and Ortiz Heirs
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In 1972, five rare Maori wooden panels were discovered in a swamp in New Zealand’s North Island. Shortly after the discovery, the panels were illegally exported out of the country by an antiquities dealer and then bought by Swiss collector George Ortiz. In 2014 New Zealand obtained the return of the Maori panels by virtue of an agreement with the heirs of Ortiz.
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Cuneiform Tablets and Ancient Clay Bullae – United States v. Hobby Lobby
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Approximately 4,000 ancient Iraq artifacts were bought by Hobby Lobby’s president and smuggled into the United States, in violation of federal law. In the settlement, Hobby Lobby agreed to pay $3 million in fines and surrender the artifacts, which have now been returned to Iraq and will most likely be displayed in Iraq’s National Museum.
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Sarcophage romain – I. SA c. Ordonnance de restitution et Turquie
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Fin 2010, lors d’un contrôle d’inventaire aux Ports francs de Genève, l’Administration fédérale des douanes découvre un exceptionnel sarcophage romain représentant les douze travaux d’Hercule. Suspicieuse, l’Administration séquestre le bien. La Turquie se constitue comme partie plaignante dans la procédure pénale ouverte à Genève, se déclarant légitime propriétaire du sarcophage. En 2015, le Ministère public genevois ordonne la restitution de l’objet à la Turquie. Le détenteur du sarcophage recourt en vain devant la Cour de Justice puis au Tribunal fédéral, avant de se rétracter. L’objet doit donc être restitué à la Turquie, mais personne n’a été condamné
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Gravures Dja Dja Wurrung – Musée de Melbourne c. Dja Dja Wurrung
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Au printemps 2004, le Musée de Melbourne organise une exposition d’œuvres sur écorces aborigènes. Parmi les biens présentés figurent deux anciennes gravures sur écorces prêtées par le British Museum et les Kew Royal Botanic Gardens. La tribu australienne Dja Dja Wurrung bloque le retour de ces objets en Angleterre. Après des négociations et une médiation infructueuses avec les représentants Dja Dja Wurrung, le Musée de Melbourne intente une action judiciaire.
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