Sotheby's to sell Josef Von Brandt's "Cossacks on the March" under settlement between Heinrich Morgenstern heirs and Frances Slotkowski trust 

New York, NY -- August 29, 2008 -- The heirs of Heinrich Morgenstern, a Jewish businessman who lived in Germany during the Nazi era, and the Frances Slotkowski Declaration of Trust of Chicago, Illinois have agreed to sell the Josef von Brandt painting Cossacks on the March at auction through Sotheby’s in New York City.  The settling parties will sell the work with an art title insurance policy issued by ARIS Title Insurance Corporation.

In 1938 Morgenstern, who lived in Fuerth, Bavaria, was forced to sell his manufacturing business, pay a large Jewish exit tax and leave Germany. The Nazi authorities also refused to permit him to take his art collection with him and he was forced to sell it. Morgenstern’s art collection consisted of approximately 230 German and old master artworks, some of which were sold to Hitler’s Linz museum.

After WWII, Heinrich Morgenstern’s son Werner Morgenstern, then serving as an officer with the U.S. military, filed claims for the loss of the Morgenstern art collection. In July 1968, a settlement was reached with the State of Bavaria.

In 2006, the Morgenstern heirs with the aid of their attorneys and the New York State Banking Department Holocaust Claims Processing Office (NYS-HCPO) located the Josef von Brandt painting Cossacks on the March, oil on canvas, 61.5 x 39 inches, in the collection of Dr. Eugene Slotkowski, a medical doctor living in Chicago. Dr. Slotkowski had purchased Cossacks on the March at auction many years ago, without knowledge of its Nazi era past.

After discussions, the Morgenstern heirs and the Slotkowski family have now settled the Morgenstern heirs’ claim to the painting. The heirs of Heinrich Morgenstern wish to thank the Slotkowski family for their willingness to help remedy a historical wrong and bring this matter to an amicable resolution.

A number of other artworks from the Morgenstern collection have also been discovered and are in the process of being recovered. A complete list of the Morgenstern collection is listed on the German government website: www.lostart.de    

“Cossacks on the March” will be offered for sale during Sotheby's auction of Nineteenth Century European Art (including the Orientalist Sale) to be held in New York on October 23rd, 2008. The painting will be displayed at Sotheby's New York premises on pre-sale exhibition from October 18th to October 22nd.

See contact information below. To contact the attorneys for the Morgenstern heirs, contact David J. Rowland, Esq., and to contact the attorneys for the Slotkowski family, contact Elmer M. Walsh, Jr., Esq. as follows:

David J. Rowland, Esq.
Rowland & Associates
Two Park Ave., 19th Floor
New York, NY York 10016
Tel: 212-685-5509
Fax: 212-685-8862
Email: \n This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it
Website: www.rowlandlaw.com     

Elmer M. Walsh, Jr., Esq.
P.O. Box 129
Winnetka, IL 60093
Tel: 847-256-4911
Fax: 847-256-4906
Email: \n This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it

RA Peter Schink
Schink & Studzinski
Ostseestr. 109
10409 Berlin
Germany
Tel: 011-49-30-42851177
Fax: 011-49-30-42851178
Email: \n This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it
Website: www.schink-studzinski.de

Thomas R. Kline, Esq.
Andrews Kurth LLP    
1350 I Street, NW,Suite 1100
Washington, D.C. 20005
Tel: 202-662-2716
Fax: 202-662-2739
Email: \n This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it
Website: www.andrewskurth.com

Anna B. Rubin, Esq.
Holocaust Claims Processing
State of New York Banking Dept
One State Street
New York, NY 10004-1417
Tel: 212-709-5583
Fax: 212-709-5592
Email: \n This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it
Website: www.banking.state.ny.us


Associated Contacts:

Lauren Gioia
Sotheby’s
Senior Press Officer, VP
1334 York Avenue at 72nd Street
New York, NY 10021    
Tel: 212 606 7176
Fax: 212 606 7381
Email: \n This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it
Website: www.sothebys.com

Judith L. Pearson, President
ARIS Title Insurance Corporation
340 Madison Avenue
Second Floor
New York, NY  10173-1922
Phone:  212-563-3600
Fax:  212-563-3700
Email: \n This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it
Website: www.aris-corporation.com