1998 international framework on the restitution of Nazi-confiscated artworks, the foundation of modern provenance litigation.
The Washington Principles, adopted in 1998 at the Washington Conference on Holocaust-Era Assets by some forty states, set out a non-binding international framework for identifying and restituting artworks confiscated by the Nazi regime. They invite states and institutions to search their collections for looted works, to publish provenances, to facilitate research by rightful claimants and to reach just and fair solutions, which can range from outright restitution to compensation or custody agreements. Although lacking binding force, they have profoundly transformed the art market: provenance research has become a due-diligence standard for museums, auction houses and insurers, and looting-based claims continue to feed resounding litigation decades after the events. For insurance, they turned title into an identified and insurable risk: a work with a provenance gap over the 1933-1945 period carries a claim risk that title policies seek to cover and that underwriting must assess.
A museum discovers that a painting in its collection has a provenance gap between 1938 and 1946. Applying the Washington Principles, it publishes the information, undertakes research into rightful claimants and negotiates a just and fair solution with the identified heirs.
Washington Principles, Washington Conference Principles, restitution des œuvres spoliées