Ruling Paves Way for Transfer of Art Trove Including Nazi-Looted Works

A German man who had stashed a trove of art that included works stolen by the Nazis was of sound mind when he bequeathed his father’s collection to the Museum of Fine Arts in Bern, Switzerland, a Munich court ruled on Thursday. The decision paves the way for the 1,500 artworks to be transferred.

Cornelius Gurlitt drew up his will in 2014, months after the existence of the collection in his Munich apartment came to light, capturing the world’s attention. But a cousin, Uta Werner, had challenged that decision.

The discovery stunned not only the art world — Jewish groups and historians denounced the decision by the Bavarian police to keep their knowledge of the collection’s existence secret for nearly two years after seizing it in 2012.