Since 2013, the process of dealing with the Gurlitt collection has led to fundamental reflections as to how museums should handle Nazi-looted art. In ac- cepting the bequest, the Kunstmuseum Bern has also initiated a process of reassessing questions of prove- nance and restitution. This is demonstrated not least by the decisions taken by the Nationalrat [Swiss Nati- onal Council] and the Ständerat [Council of States] in the summer and autumn of 2022, which adopted both the motion to set up an independent commission for cultural property seized as a result of Nazi persecuti- on and the motion to establish a central, digital plat- form to publish the results of provenance research.
By accepting the Gurlitt bequest, the Stiftung Kunst- museum Bern has committed itself to searching for and restituting cultural objects expropriated as a re- sult of Nazi persecution. In dealing with this bequest in recent years, it has become clear that even in cases of very incomplete evidence, are possible that ade- quately take account of the interests of the current proprietors and (former) rightful owners. Aside from any discussion of terminology, a central element of each individual case is the fact that individuals lost their possessions and their lives due to persecution by National Socialist Germany. It follows on from this that fair and responsible handling of cultural assets seized as a result of Nazi persecution is imperative. By being prepared to accept to make plausible decisions on the basis of findings leading to an incomplete or uncertain state of evidence below a justiciable level, museums can live up to the principles signed by more than 40 states in Washington in 1998 and in Terezín in 2009. In doing so, they can also show their willing- ness to engage in serious, respectful dialogue with the victims’ families.
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