Nazi-Looted Portrait Disappears Again from Buenos Aires Home
Portrait of a Lady by Giuseppe Ghislandi, stolen by Nazis, vanished after police raided a property linked to a former SS officer’s family near Buenos Aires.
A rare painting stolen by Nazis during World War II has gone missing after Argentinian authorities raided a property near Buenos Aires, federal prosecutor Carlos Martínez said.
The late-Baroque portrait, Portrait of a Lady by Giuseppe Ghislandi, was first spotted hanging above a sofa in a home advertised for sale by the daughter of Friedrich Kadgien, an SS officer who fled to Argentina in 1945.
When police searched the residence this week, the painting was gone and investigators seized two weapons instead. Authorities are now treating the incident as an alleged cover-up of smuggling, according to the Argentinian daily Clarín.
Mysterious Disappearance
Officials noted the home’s furnishings had been rearranged and a large rug now covers the spot where the painting once hung. Peter Schouten, journalist for the Dutch newspaper Algemeen Dagblad that first revealed the artwork’s reappearance, believes it was removed soon after media reports surfaced.
Historical Significance
Portrait of a Lady was part of Amsterdam art dealer Jacques Goudstikker’s collection, much of which was seized by Nazis and later recovered. For over 80 years, the whereabouts of Ghislandi’s portrait of Contessa Colleoni remained unknown until its recent sighting.
Links to SS Officer
Wartime records uncovered by Algemeen Dagblad suggest Kadgien, a senior aide to Hermann Göring, acquired the painting after fleeing Europe. He died in 1979, and despite repeated attempts, his daughters have not cooperated with investigators.
The family’s efforts to sell the house inadvertently led to the painting’s rediscovery. Another Nazi-looted still-life by Abraham Mignon was also spotted on one of the sisters’ social media accounts, but she claimed no knowledge of the artwork.
Goudstikker’s heirs, led by daughter-in-law Marei von Saher, have vowed to reclaim every piece stolen from his collection. In 2006, they recovered 202 artworks but the fate of Portrait of a Lady remains unresolved.
The ongoing disappearance highlights challenges in recovering Nazi-looted art and the legal and ethical battle to restore stolen cultural heritage.
This topic was reported by BBC.
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