Veritas News Network Munich Apartment Hiding $1 Billion Worth of Nazi Loot

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Munich Apartment Hiding $1 Billion Worth of Nazi Loot

By: Derek // News Briefs, World News

(Derek Dowell – VNN) Hundreds of pieces of art, representing almost $1.4 billion, were found stashed in the apartment of the son of an art dealer who was among the few authorized by Hitler’s propaganda chief, Joseph Gobels, to sell confiscated works. Though the discovery was made in 2011, the German government made the announcement on Monday.

Steffen Seibert, a government spokesman said, “The federal government was informed several months ago about the case.” The treasure trove was uncovered while customs officials investigated suspected tax evasion by Cornelius Gurlitt, the art dealer’s son. Included in the collection are works by Picasso, Matisse, Franz Marc, and Max Beckman.

Adolph Hitler’s World War II Nazi regime made it a regular habit to confiscate valuable works of art from the populace of countries they invaded. Many were returned to their rightful owners after the war but others had disappeared and were presumed destroyed. So far, no comment has been forthcoming about how and when efforts might be made to return the pieces of art to their rightful owners. The collection has been removed from the apartment and is being held near Munich by Bavarian customs authorities.

The German Finance Ministry has no further information on the case at present. (Image: Flickr | Recuerdos de Pandora)