Henry Gibbs Aeneas and his Family Fleeing Burning Troy 1654
Tate welcomes recommendations made by a new Spoliation Advisory Panel report on Henry Gibbs’ Aeneas and his family fleeing Burning Troy.
The report examines compelling new evidence on the painting’s history and recommends restitution to the heirs of Jewish Belgian Art Collector Samuel Hartveld.
The Spoliation Advisory Panel resolves claims from people, or their heirs, who lost possession of cultural property during the Nazi era, which is now held in UK national collections.
Tate fully supports the report’s findings and has worked closely with the claimants and panel as new information on the artwork’s provenance has emerged.
Tate Director Maria Balshaw said:
“It is a profound privilege to help reunite this work with its rightful heirs, and I am delighted to see the spoliation process working successfully to make this happen. Although the artwork’s provenance was extensively investigated when it was acquired in 1994, crucial facts concerning previous ownership of the painting were not known.
“I would like to thank the Sonia Klein Trust and the Spoliation Advisory Panel for their collaboration over the last year. We now look forward to welcoming the family to Tate in the coming months and presenting the painting to them.”
Arts Minister Sir Chris Bryant said:
“The case of Samuel Hartveld is the perfect example of the Spoliation Advisory Panel doing the work it was designed to do - helping to reunite families with their most treasured possessions that were looted by the Nazis.
“The decision to return the painting to the heirs of Samuel Hartveld and his wife is absolutely the right decision, which I welcome wholeheartedly.”
The trustees of the Sonia Klein Trust said:
“The trustees acting for the Sonia Klein Trust and their counsel, Dr. Hannes Hartung, based in Munich, are deeply grateful to the Spoliation Advisory Panel for their recommendation that Tate Britain restitute the narrative painting of Henry Gibbs ‘Aeneas and his family fleeing Burning Troy’ and Parliament’s ratification of that recommendation.
“This decision clearly acknowledges the awful Nazi persecution of Samuel Hartveld and that the ‘clearly looted’ painting belonged to Mr. Hartveld, a Jewish Belgian art collector and dealer.
“The trustees acting for the Sonia Klein Trust further thank the staff at Tate Britain for working with the trustees and their legal representative Dr. Hannes Hartung, to realise the return of this important painting by a highly regarded British painter. The staff at Tate Britian were open minded and prompt in their approval of the Spoilation Advisory Panel’s recommendation.
“Further, the trustees wish to acknowledge the scholarly efforts of Geert Sels, author of ‘Kunst voor das Reich’ in identifying the plight of Samuel Hartveld and his family because of Nazi persecution in Belgium during World War II. With this restitution, the trustees acting for the Sonia Klein Trust honour and remember the life of Samuel Hartveld and his family.”
The 17th century oil painting by Canterbury artist Henry Gibbs was initially purchased by Tate from Galerie Jan de Maere, Brussels in 1994.
In May 2024, the Spoliation Advisory Panel received a claim from trustees acting for the Sonia Klein Trust, which was established for Mr. Hartveld’s heirs, requesting the return of the painting by Henry Gibbs.
Following extensive research by the trust’s legal representatives and others into how the family had come to lose the painting, it was identified as being in Tate’s collection.
The Spoliation Advisory Panel considered all the evidence and decided that the legal and moral claims to the restitution of the painting were sufficiently compelling for them to advise the Secretary of State that the Sonia Klein Trust is entitled to its return.
Tate will now implement the report’s findings, recognising the Sonia Klein Trust for the heirs and great-grandchildren of Samuel Hartveld.