With the signing of the Washington Principles in 1998, 44 countries committed themselves to identifying artworks looted by the Nazis, locating former possessors or heirs and finding “just and fair solutions” for disputes about such artworks. The last point is important for descendants of former possessors of looted artworks, as legal claims often fail due to statutes of limitations, gaps in evidence and laws on good faith purchases.
So far, five countries have established special committees for hearing cases of Nazi-looted artworks: Germany, Austria, France, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. As of this year, Switzerland will join those countries: Its new “Independent Committee for Cultural Property with a Burdened Past”1 (the Commit…