Nazi-Looted Monet Pastel Returned to Family After Decades

 

A pastel by Claude Monet, looted by the Nazis during World War II, has been returned to the descendants of the Jewish couple from whom it was stolen, officials announced on Wednesday. The artwork, titled Bord de Mer, was purchased by Adalbert "Bela" and Hilda Parlagi at an Austrian art auction in 1936. However, after the Nazi annexation of Austria in 1938, the Parlagis were forced to flee the country, leaving their belongings behind.

In 1940, the Nazis seized their possessions, including seven other artworks. A Nazi art dealer eventually acquired the Monet pastel, which was created around 1865, but it mysteriously disappeared in 1941. Bela Parlagi spent years searching for the stolen art but passed away in 1981 without success. His son also attempted to recover the artworks but died in 2012 without any leads.

The breakthrough in the case came in 2021 when the Commission for Looted Art in Europe alerted authorities about the pastel. It had surfaced in the art market, having been sold by a New Orleans dealer in 2017 to private collectors, who later listed it for sale at a Houston gallery in 2023. FBI agents and New York police contacted the current owners, who were unaware of the artwork's troubled history. Upon learning its origins, they voluntarily relinquished their ownership, and the pastel was returned to the Parlagis' granddaughters, Helen Lowe and Francoise Parlagi.

Anne Webber, co-chair of the Commission for Looted Art in Europe, called the return of the artwork "an act of justice," emphasizing the emotional significance for the family. FBI assistant director James Dennehy echoed these sentiments, noting that while the pastel is valuable, its true worth lies in its connection to the Parlagi family and their legacy.

The FBI is still investigating other stolen art pieces from the Parlagi collection, including a Paul Signac watercolor, Seine in Paris (Pont de Grenelle), which was also purchased by the same Nazi dealer. Due to its history, authorities believe the Signac piece may now be known under a different name. The artwork has been added to the FBI's National Stolen Art File, and officials are asking for any information that could lead to its recovery.

According to the National Archives, approximately 20% of Europe's art was looted by the Nazis. Despite international efforts, many pieces remain unrecovered. A recent report by the World Jewish Restitution Organization highlighted that 24 countries have made little or no progress in returning stolen art from the Holocaust era, with more than 100,000 artworks still missing.

The return of the Monet pastel to the Parlagi family serves as a reminder of the ongoing challenges in recovering cultural treasures stolen during one of history’s darkest periods.