Austria to return stolen art by Nazis

AUSTRIA’S culture minister yesterday agreed to abide by a court ruling and give up ownership of five Gustav Klimt paintings worth over €125 million to a Californian woman whose family had them stolen by the Nazis.

But the country’s Culture Minister Elizabeth Gehrer proposed her country be allowed to continue displaying the best-known works as national treasures.

Ms Gehrer said Austria would comply with the arbitration court’s decision on Monday that the country is obligated to give the paintings to Maria Altmann under laws mandating the restitution of art objects to Holocaust victims.