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Page 3 of 3 Nazis did not begin expropriating Jewish property in Holland until March 1941, when the concentration-camp deportations began. “The price of art actually went up at this time because everyone knew the Nazis were out to acquire works,” Ekkart said. “There is no question that in those first two years Jewish galleries were buying and selling at market prices.” The difficulty for the Katz heirs may be in proving the sales were forced. “You would have to prove the sale was, for example, half of the market value, or that at the moment of the sale the owner was planning an escape, or that there are indications of a connection between a sale and an escape or other efforts to secure safety,” Ekkart explained. Holland had numerous Jewish art dealers before World War II, many of whom remained in the country after the German invasion of May 1940. From the start of the occupation, German authorities banned Jews from Holland's civil service and required them to register their business assets. In January 1941, all Jews were required to register with local authorities. Two months later the liquidation and "Aryanization" of Jewish businesses began. "There was nothing voluntary about any aspect of any sale or transaction in the 1940s," Katz lawyer Talarchyk said. "It was a terrible atmosphere for Jews from the start, and it only got worse," said David Katz, who was a soldier in Rotterdam when the Germans bombed the city in 1940. Katz told JTA that Nazi pressure on his father began immediately after the invasion. Once the deportations began Katz, his wife and four children went into hiding. In the end, the intervention of a contact in Switzerland helped the family secure their exit to safety. The elder Katz died in Switzerland after the war. The Katz children, three of whom live in Europe, submitted a claim for one piece of artwork in 2003 as a test case, then filed their massive claim in March to meet a government deadline that has since been extended. Evelien Campfens, the rapporteur for Holland's restitution committee, said the committee spends an average of 10 months on each case. As for the veracity of the Katz claim, Campfens refused to speculate. "We do not discuss claims that are under review," she said. No one has commented on this article.
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