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13 April 2017: Report of French Working Group on the Provenance of Works of Art recovered after the Second World War

The annual Rapport du groupe de travail sur les provenances d’oeuvres récupérées après la seconde guerre mondiale submitted to the French Culture Minister Audrey Azoulay in March has been published.

The working group was set up in March 2013 to look into the provenance of the ca 2,000 MNR works of art in the possession of the French state since the late 1940s with the purpose of restitution to the rightful owners.

Research sources include catalogues of sales held at INHA, archival records, marks and inscriptions on the MNR works and previous research.

In the course of the current year,  26 items were found to be looted and their owners identified; 46 items were found not to be looted; detailed information was found on 41 objects; and research was inconclusive on 138 objects.

To read the full report and see details of the works researched, click here.