Skip To Content
JEWISH. INDEPENDENT. NONPROFIT.
The Schmooze

Heirs Seek Return of Stolen Modigliani Painting

The Helly Nahmad Gallery in New York is not saying whether it is in possession of a famous and highly valuable 1918 painting by Amedeo Modigliani. Heirs to the original owner of the artwork, which was stolen and auctioned off by the Nazis in 1944, are suing Nahmad for its return or its “fair market value,” which is estimated to be between $18 million and $25 million.

Amedeo Modigliani, ?Seated Man With a Cane,? 1918.

Helly Nahmad is the son of Beirut-born billionaire art dealer David Nahmad.

According to The Daily Mail, Philippe Maestracci has filed papers with the U.S. District Court in Manhattan claiming that the painting, “Seated Man With a Cane,” was owned by his grandfather Oscar Stettiner, a prominent art gallery owner in Paris. Stettiner and his family fled to the south of France in advance of the Nazi occupation of Paris, leaving behind his property. The Nazis sold the painting, along with other “degenerate art” at auction in 1944, and since then it was impossible to trace due to inaccurate labeling.

But since 2008, Maestracci has believed that Nahmad is in possession of “Seated Man With a Cane,” and that he is planning to sell it through Sotheby’s. He is trying to get it back using the argument that that the sale of the painting by the Nazis is “void since it occurred without the owner’s consent in violation of international law and New York’s law and public policy not to recognize forced sales under the Nazi regime.”

Maestracci has reportedly contacted the Helly Nahmad Gallery several times requesting the return of the painting and has received no reply.

A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.

If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

With your support, we’ll be ready for whatever 2025 brings.

Republish This Story

Please read before republishing

We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free, unless it originated with JTA, Haaretz or another publication (as indicated on the article) and as long as you follow our guidelines. You must credit the Forward, retain our pixel and preserve our canonical link in Google search.  See our full guidelines for more information, and this guide for detail about canonical URLs.

To republish, copy the HTML by clicking on the yellow button to the right; it includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to the Forward. It does not include images; to avoid copyright violations, you must add them manually, following our guidelines. Please email us at [email protected], subject line “republish,” with any questions or to let us know what stories you’re picking up.

We don't support Internet Explorer

Please use Chrome, Safari, Firefox, or Edge to view this site.