In a significant legal ruling, a New York judge ordered the Art Institute of Chicago to return an Egon Schiele drawing, deemed stolen for 86 years since the Nazis looted it from Fritz Grünbaum. The ruling came after a lengthy legal battle initiated by the Manhattan District Attorney's Office. Despite the AIC's assertion that the drawing was sold voluntarily by Grünbaum's family in the 1950s, the judge expressed skepticism over the legitimacy of that claim, citing the context of its acquisition and the dubious nature of the dealer involved.
"It's highly improbable that Mathilde Lukacs ever obtained proper title to Russian War Prisoner," Drysdale said, adding that instead of looking deeper into the issue, the museum "relied upon the assurances of a discredited art dealer with an obvious self-serving agenda."
Drysdale called Schiele's 1916 Russian War Prisoner "stolen property for the last 86 years," ever since it was taken by the Nazis from the Austrian Jewish cabaret performer Fritz Grünbaum.
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