Who Are the Owners of These Nazi-Looted Masterpieces—and Could Displaying Them at One of France's Most Popular Museums Help Track Them Down?
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The Musée d'Orsay has launched a new permanent exhibition titled 'Who Owns These Works?' that focuses on artworks potentially looted or sold under duress during World War II. The display features 13 pieces from a collection of 225 artworks that do not belong to the state, many of which were separated from their rightful owners during the war. The museum aims to trace the provenance of these pieces and identify their original owners or their descendants.
- ▪The exhibition showcases artworks that may have been stolen or sold under suspicious circumstances during World War II.
- ▪Among the displayed works is Edgar Degas's 'The Dinner at the Ball,' which has a mysterious provenance after being owned by a Jewish collector who died in Auschwitz.
- ▪The museum holds 225 artworks that were separated from their rightful owners during the war, with many descendants still unidentified.
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Who Are the Owners of These Nazi-Looted Masterpieces—and Could Displaying Them at One of France’s Most Popular Museums Help Track Them Down? A new permanent display at the Musée d’Orsay showcases artworks that may have been stolen or sold under suspicious circumstances during World War II. Officials are still hoping to find the families of their rightful owners Ellen Wexler | Writer and Special Projects Editor May 21, 2026 11:02 a.m. ShareCopy linkEmailSMSFacebookXRedditLinkedInBlueskyPrintAdd as preferred source Museumgoers can read the labels on the backs of the paintings, which may provide clues about each work's provenance.
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Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at Smithsonian Magazine.
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