Claims of Nazi loot donations denied by Hunt

ALLEGATIONS that Nazi loot was donated to the State by the late John and Gertrude Hunt were denied by the couple’s son yesterday.

John Hunt Jnr, speaking from his home in Howth, Dublin, said: “my mother who was German, left Germany because she did not want to be part of what was going on before the war and wanted out. After the war she returned to visit her mother, not to buy art.

“It is rather horrid for your parents to be accused of associating with Nazis without a shred of evidence.”

The Simon Wiesenthal Centre, which traces Nazi loot, has asked Art Minister John O’Donoghue to investigate the Hunt Collection’s provenance for any connection to the Nazis.

Mr Hunt Jnr said he would welcome a detailed look at the huge collection housed at the old Limerick Custom House.

Meanwhile, Hunt Museum director Virginia Teehan said: “our desire in the museum is to work as closely and freely as possible with all the various agencies involved in this.”

The director said that all museums and collections all over the world contained objects from a variety of different backgrounds and past.