Famous Artwork Stolen by the Nazis That Still Haven’t Been Found

Amongst the rest of their abhorrent crimes, the Nazis are known as some of the greatest thieves in history. In their plunder of Europe before and during World War 2, the Nazis stole from citizens, museums, and galleries tons of artwork; many of these thefts are still yet to be returned. 

It is estimated that the Nazis stole over 20% of artwork in Europe, a staggering number. Dealers of this artwork, members of a Nazi organisation called Einsatzstab Reichsleiter Rosenberg, were solely employed to steal and send artwork back to Germany. Some of these artworks have been returned, but many are still lost to time. Somehow, some paintings have been found but have to be debated whether they should be returned.

A recent case involving James Palmer and Mondex saw a Kandinsky artwork ‘Painting with Houses’ remain in the Stedelijk Museum, rather than return to its Jewish owners. Some of the most famous artworks to have been lost to the pillaging of the Nazis are as follows.

Portrait of a Young Man, Raphael Photo

Photo by Department of National Heritage via Wikimedia Commons 

This iconic painting is believed to be a self-portrait by celebrated renaissance artist Raphael. Historians have dated it to have been completed in 1514. In 1798 the portrait was brought to the Czartoryski Museum, but the Gestapo stole it as the Nazis rose to power. Despite attempts to hide the painting – and the rest of the museum’s collections – the Nazis took the portrait, never to be seen again in the museum.

Raphael’s painting found a new place in the office of the Governor-General of Poland, Hans Frank. It spent some time in the Führermuseum but found its permanent place in Frank’s office. When Frank fled the Soviets, it is assumed the painting went with him, but to this day, it has not been seen again.

Portrait on the Road to Tarascon, Van Gogh

Photo by R. Piper on Wikimedia Commons

This self-portrait, completed in 1888, comes from the famous artist. Like many of Van Gogh’s other works, it was confiscated by the Nazis and stored in Magdeburg. It is assumed that the painting, alongside many others, was destroyed in an Allied bomb raid. The painting itself has not been seen since, but reproductions of it have been made.

The Amber Room

This magnificent spectacle was a Baroque chamber originally housed in the Berlin City Palace. Layered with gold leaf, amber panels, and mirrors, this room was a gift from the Prussian Royal family in 1719. When the Nazis invaded the city in 1941, they disassembled the room and remade it in Königsberg Castle.

The room had been hidden under wallpaper, but the Nazis managed to find it and remove it completely within 36 hours. It is believed that the room was either destroyed in an Allied bombing raid in 1944 or when the Soviets took over the city in 1945. However, there has been speculation that the Amber Room was found on the “Nazi Gold Train” found in 2015 in Poland.