The following table, created with the AI document analysis tool NotebookLLM, details the claimants, their persecuted ancestors, the artworks subject to the claim, and the recommendation made by Germany's Advisory Commission, which will shut down in November 2025. (Highlights in yellow added by OAD)
It was created by loading the Commission Reports into NotebookLLM and asking the question: list claimants, their persecuted ancestors, the artworks claimed and the decision of the commission
How accurate is NotebookLLM's summary?
| Claimants | Persecuted Ancestor(s) | Artworks Claimed | Decision of the Commission |
|---|---|---|---|
| Heirs of A. B.(Community of Heirs, represented by Dr. D. B.) | A. B. (d. 1938) and his four children (C., D., E., and F.) | Painting Das Zitronenscheibchen(Lemon Slice) (c. 1667) by Jacob Ochtervelt | Recommend the restitution of the painting. This was based exclusively on moral and ethical considerations, not legal assessment. The restitution included the stipulation that if the painting is sold within 10 years, the state of Bavaria is to receive 50% of the proceeds. |
| Heirs of Laura Baumann (Karl Ernst Baumann, grandson) | Laura Baumann (d. 1940) | Painting Portrait der Familie von Dithfurth by Johann J. August von der Embde | Recommend that the painting remain in the museum, and the claimant be paid €10,000 compensation. |
| Heirs of George E. Behrens(Community of heirs) | George Eduard Behrens (1881–1956) | Painting Pariser Wochentag (Weekday in Paris) (1869) by Adolph von Menzel | Cannot recommend returning the painting. The Commission concluded that the sale did not constitute a loss of property as the result of Nazi persecution. |
| Heirs of Max J. Emden | Dr. Max James Emden (1874–1940) | Painting The Zwinger Moat in Dresden by Bernardo Bellotto (Canaletto) and Painting The Karlskirche in Viennaby Bernardo Bellotto (Canaletto) | Recommend the restitution of both paintings to the rightful heirs. |
| Heirs of Max Fischer (Eva Marx, George Fischer, or his widow Marylou M. Fischer) | Dr. Max Fischer(1893–1954) | Painting Geschwister(Siblings) by Erich Heckel | Recommend that the painting be restituted. |
| Heirs of Alfred Flechtheim (Dr Michael R. Hulton and Penny R. Hulton) | Alfred Flechtheim(1878–1937) | Painting Portrait of Tilla Durieux (1910) by Oskar Kokoschka | Recommend that the painting should be returned (restituted). |
| Heirs of Alfred Flechtheim | Alfred Flechtheim(1878–1937) | Painting Violon et encrier(Violin and inkwell) (1913) by Juan Gris | Cannot recommend returning the painting. The Commission found no proof of ownership by Flechtheim at the time of loss, nor specific reasons to recognize the sale as persecution-related loss. |
| Heirs of Julius and Clara Freund | Julius Freund and Clara Freund | Three paintings by Karl Blechen and a watercolour by Anselm Feuerbach | Recommend that the German Federal Government restitute the artworks. |
| Heirs of Robert Graetz | Robert Graetz(1878–1945) | Painting Portrait of Alfred Kerr (1907) by Lovis Corinth | Not to recommend restitution of the painting. The Commission concluded that a private settlement concluded in 1957 between the Graetz heirs and the Kahle heirs precluded restitution. |
| Heirs of Robert Graetz (Roberto Graetz, grandson) | Robert Graetz(1878–1945) | Painting Gutshof in Dangast (Farm in Dangast) (1910) by Karl Schmidt-Rottluff and Painting Selbstbildnis (Self Portrait) (1920) by Karl Schmidt-Rottluff | Recommend that the paintings should be returned (restituted). |
| Heirs of Kurt and Else Grawi | Kurt (Denny) Grawi(1877–1944) and Else Grawi (1894–1964) | Painting Füchse (Foxes) (1913) by Franz Marc | Recommend that the painting be restituted (by majority decision). The sale, though completed outside the Nazi sphere of influence, was considered a direct consequence of forced emigration and persecution. |
| Heirs of Felix Hildesheimer(Sidney Strauss and David Sand) | Felix Hildesheimer(d. 1 August 1939) | A violin built by Giuseppe Guarneri (Josephus Guarnerius filius Andreae) in Cremona in 1706 | Recommend that the violin remain with the Stiftung, which should pay the heirs €100,000 in compensation. This balance was based on a "fair and just solution" recognizing Hildesheimer's persecution and the foundation's exemplary provenance efforts and purpose. |
| Heirs of Clara Levy | Clara Levy, née Isaak (1864–1940) | Painting Three Graces(1902/04) by Lovis Corinth | Cannot recommend a restitution. The Commission found that the painting was sold by one of the heirs in New York (a safe country) and the loss was not proven to be a result of Nazi persecution. |
| Heirs of Dr Alexander Lewin | Dr Alexander Lewin(1879–1942) | Painting Bauernmädchen ohne Hut mit weißem Halstuch (Peasant Girl without a Hat and with a White Headcloth) (1897) by Wilhelm Leibl | Recommend that the German Federal Government return the piece (restitution). |
| Heirs of Hedwig Lewenstein Weyermann and Irma Lewenstein Klein | Hedwig Lewenstein Weyermann (1875–1937) and Irma Edith Ruth Klein (1907–1983) | Painting Das bunte Leben(The Colorful Life) (1907) by Wassily Kandinsky | Recommend the restitution of the painting. |
| Heirs of Max and Martha Liebermann | Max Liebermann(1847–1935) and Martha Liebermann(1857–1943) | Drawing Bauarbeiter (also Maurer beim Bau) (1875) by Adolph von Menzel | Recommend the restitution of the drawing. |
| Heirs of Heinrich Rieger | Dr. Heinrich Rieger(1868–1942) | Watercolor Kauernder weiblicher Akt (Crouching Nude Girl) (1917) by Egon Schiele | Recommend that the watercolor be restituted. |
| Heirs of Max and Margarethe Rüdenberg | Max Rüdenberg(1863–1942) and Margarethe Rüdenberg (1879–1943) | Watercolor painting Marsh Landscape with Red Windmill (or The Windmill) (1922) by Karl Schmidt‐Rottluff | Recommend that the artwork be returned (restituted). |
| Peter Sachs (son and heir of Dr. Hans Sachs) | Dr. Hans Sachs(1881–1974) | Poster collection (approx. 4,000 posters) | Recommend that the collection remain in the German Historical Museum. This recommendation was made in light of Dr. Sachs's clearly expressed will and his compensation settlement from 1961. |
| Heirs of the Salomon family(Monique and Peter Rolf Ludnowski) | Alfred Salomon (d. 1 February 1945) | Painting Bacchanale(1896) by Lovis Corinth | Recommend that the painting be restituted. The Commission also suggested the city be compensated €65,000 for incurred costs. |
| Dr. and Mrs. Max Stern Foundation(Heir to Dr. Max Stern) | Dr. Max Stern(1903–1987) | Painting Uhlans on the March (1859) by Hans von Marées | Recommend the restitution, subject to two conditions: (1) the Foundation must agree not to sell the painting for ten years to allow for research concerning a primary injured party, and (2) research must not reveal new facts that speak against restitution. |
| Heirs of Ludwig Traube(Community of heirs, including Gertrud Traube and Eduard Bühler) | Gertrud Traube and Eduard Bühler (and other family members). (Ludwig Traube died in 1928). | Painting Stillleben mit Früchtekorb. Kürbis, Melone und Pfirsiche an einer Eiche (c. 1670) by Abraham Mignon | Unable to recommend restitution. The Commission recommended the city pay the heirs €200,000 compensation. |
| Heirs of the "Welfenschatz"-Consortium | Jewish art dealers, including J.S. Goldschmidt, I. Rosenbaum, Z.M. Hackenbroch, Isaac Rosenbaum, and Saemy Rosenberg | The 42 remaining pieces of the "Welfenschatz"(Guelph Treasure) | Cannot recommend the return of the Welfenschatz. The Commission concluded the sale was not a compulsory sale due to persecution. |
| Heirs of Paul Westheim(represented by Ms. Frenk) | Paul Westheim | Painting Makabre Szene – Dachgarten der Irrsinnigen (Macabre scenes) by Joachim Ringelnatz | Recommended an out-of-court settlement(painting remains with the museum, city pays €7,000 compensation). |
| Heirs of George Grosz | George Grosz (1893–1959) | Painting Pompe Funèbre(1928) by George Grosz and Painting Stillleben mit Okarina, Fisch und Muschel (1931) by George Grosz | Not to recommend restitution of the paintings. The Commission concluded George Grosz lost ownership of Pompe Funèbre no later than April 1934, not as a result of persecution. The loss of Stillleben mit Okarina, Fisch und Muschel was also not proven to be causally linked to persecution. |
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