Nazi-Seized Klee Goes to Court After Munich Rejects Talks
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The heirs of a German art historian who emigrated to the Soviet Union in 1927 filed a legal claim against the city of Munich for a Paul Klee painting that they say was stolen from their grandmother by the Nazis.
The painting, “Sumpflegende” (Swamp Legend), is housed in Munich’s Lenbachhaus museum. Three grandchildren of Sophie Lissitzky-Kueppers filed suit for its return at the Bavarian regional court after offers to negotiate were rebuffed. The suit, dated March 23, puts the painting’s value at 2 million euros ($2.7 million.)