Returned to the owner
Since the creation of the Origins Unknown Agency (Bureau Herkomst Gezocht), nearly 500 works of art have been returned to rightful claimants at the advice of the Restitutions Committee. These restitutions were preceded by detailed research of the records of the Netherlands Art Property Foundation (SNK – Stichting Nederlands Kunstbezit). Some claims which were made immediately after the Second World War turned out to have been unjustly rejected by the SNK. Claimants were also often unable to pay the money they had received as a result of forced sale back to the Dutch state. Using the name of the previous owner listed on these claims as a point of departure, the search could begin. Research of the SNK records also revealed entirely new information about potential rightful claimants. First, it had to be determined whether these individuals had survived the war and/or whether any of their direct heirs were able to be located. An exhaustive search for previous rightful claimants and their heirs was launched. Civil status registers and population registers, telephone books from all over the world, notarial archives and tax archives were carefully examined. For a number of difficult cases, this phase of the research is still in full swing. Considering all the restitutions that have been made, it is clear that this enormous amount of work has not been in vain.
