A painting stolen by the Nazis from a Jewish art dealer more than 80 years ago has unexpectedly resurfaced in Argentina after appearing in photographs from a property listing. minotaur fight store | minotaurfightstore

The artwork, Portrait of a Lady by Italian Baroque painter Giuseppe Ghislandi, was identified in an image published by a Buenos Aires estate agency advertising a luxury home once owned by a former high-ranking Nazi official. The discovery was reported by Dutch newspaper AD.

The portrait belonged to renowned Amsterdam art dealer Jacques Goudstikker, whose vast collection of more than 1,100 works was forcibly sold to top Nazi officials following his death in 1940 as he fled the German occupation. Among the buyers was Hermann Göring, Hitler’s powerful deputy.

Although hundreds of the looted works were later recovered and displayed in the Netherlands, many remain missing. In 2006, after years of legal battles, Goudstikker’s daughter-in-law, Marei von Saher, successfully reclaimed 202 pieces from Dutch museums. However, Portrait of the Contessa Colleoni—as the Ghislandi painting is also known—remained unaccounted for until now.

According to wartime records, the painting was in the hands of Friedrich Kadgien, an SS officer and financial aide to Göring. After the war, Kadgien escaped Europe, eventually settling in Argentina where he built a successful business career. He died in 1979, but his family retained the property where the portrait was recently photographed.

Attempts by journalists to contact Kadgien’s surviving daughters in Buenos Aires have largely been unsuccessful. When approached, one daughter denied knowledge of the painting. Another looted artwork, a floral still-life by Dutch painter Abraham Mignon, was also spotted in images shared on social media by one of the sisters, AD reported.

The Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands (RCE) reviewed the estate photographs and confirmed there is no indication the painting is a copy.

Lawyers representing the Goudstikker estate have pledged to pursue its return.
“My family’s mission is to reclaim every artwork stolen from Jacques’ collection and to honor his legacy,” von Saher said.