Authorities in Argentina have recovered an 18th-century painting stolen by the Nazis during the Second World War, a week after it was identified in an online real estate listing. The artwork, Portrait of a Lady (Contessa Colleoni) by Italian master Giuseppe Ghislandi, was handed over to the judiciary by Patricia Kadgien, daughter of late Nazi financier Friedrich Kadgien.
The painting was looted from Dutch Jewish art dealer Jacques Goudstikker in Amsterdam more than 80 years ago. It was last seen in 1946 before disappearing. The breakthrough came when a Dutch newspaper reporter spotted the painting in a photograph accompanying a property listing in Mar del Plata.
Federal prosecutor Carlos Martínez ordered a raid on the property the following day, but the painting was no longer there. Police seized two unlicensed firearms and two mobile phones. Four subsequent raids uncovered two other paintings, possibly 19th-century, along with drawings and engravings, which are being examined for possible Nazi looting.
Patricia Kadgien and her husband have been placed under house arrest on charges of concealment and obstruction of justice. They face a hearing on Thursday. Friedrich Kadgien fled to Argentina after the war, and the painting is believed to have remained in the family.
Goudstikker’s heirs plan to reclaim the painting, which was among over 1,000 works stolen from him. Goudstikker died in 1940 after falling into a ship’s hold while fleeing to safety.
