A Paris court has ordered that a Camille Pissarro painting seized by the Nazis in 1941 be returned to the heirs of Jewish banker and art collector Salomon Flavian, and cancelled its 2024 sale at Sotheby’s.
The 1902 painting, Darse de pêche et bassin Duquesne (Fishing Dock and Duquesne Basin), shows the port of Dieppe. Flavian bought it in 1935, and it was seized in Paris during the Nazi occupation. An unidentified buyer paid £1.2 million (about $1.6 million) for it at Sotheby’s London in June 2024.
In its November 5 ruling, the court declared every sale of the painting since its seizure null and void, and ordered that it be returned “wherever and in whoever’s possession it may be found.” Sotheby’s has two months to disclose the buyer’s identity to the Flavian family or pay a penalty of €1,000 for each day of delay.
The court rejected the defense’s argument that the painting had already left Flavian’s collection before the war, finding “no direct and convincing evidence” for that claim.
Corinne Hershkovitch, a lawyer for the heirs, called it “a very important ruling” that opens the way to a restitution the family has sought since the war.
Sotheby’s said it was disappointed by the restitution order but welcomed the dismissal of all claims against it. The auction house said it is considering whether to join an appeal and that client confidentiality is important to it. Mondex, a Toronto-based restitution firm involved in arranging the 2024 sale, plans to appeal, according to its lawyer.
