Court Orders Sotheby’s to Reveal Consignor, Buyer of Tiepolo Painting

A New York court has ordered Sotheby’s to publicly name the consignor and buyer of a Tiepolo painting suspected of having been looted by Nazis. The painting in question,St. Francis of Paola Holding a Rosary, Book, and Staff, ca. 1730s, was sold at auction for $100,000 in 2019. Since that time, the heirs of Jewish dealer Otto Fröhlich have launched a suit against the auction house demanding that it reveal the names of both purveyor and purchaser so that they may attempt to reclaim the painting, which they say Fröhlich lost during the Holocaust.

The ruling comes amid broader clamoring for transparency in the art market, and is unusual in that such orders, in the rare instances they are issued, typically specify the unmasking of only one party in a given transaction, either the seller or buyer, but not both.

“This case certainly establishes clear precedent that where heirs provide support for their claims of restitution, auction houses will be required to disclose the names and contact information of the buyers and sellers of the claimed looted art and cannot hide behind confidentiality policies to refuse to do so,” Geri S. Krauss, the Fröhlich heirs’ attorney, told the New York Times.

Whether Sotheby’s ponies up the names remains to be seen: The auction house has already revoked the sale of the work and taken possession of it. According to the Times, Sotheby’s is in talks with the abovementioned heirs and a second set of claimants, relatives of Adele Fischel, a cousin of Fröhlich’s whom they say owned the painting before the dealer did. The Fröhlich heirs argue that Fischel sold it to Fröhlich’s Vienna gallery in 1938 and that the dealer passed the work to a competitor “for safekeeping” when he fled the country to escape Nazi persecution. That gallerist sold the painting in 1941 and kept the money, which he said covered debts owed him by Fröhlich. Fröhlich’s heirs claim that the painting was sold at well below market value and that their dealer ancestor could have repaid his debts without selling it had he not been forced from his homeland.

“Sotheby’s remains committed to reaching an amicable resolution with all parties involved and is presently engaged in discussions with representatives of the Fröhlich and Fischel families who assert competing claims to the Tiepolo,” said the auction house in a statement.