Russian Minister of Culture: Return of "Baldin Collection" to Germany is Legally Relevant

Russian Minister of Culture Mikhail Shvydkoy has disclosed that he has fulfilled the Russian General Prosecutor's Office orders concerning the legal relevancy of the return to Germany of the so-called Baldin collection.

The Russian Ministry of Culture received from the German side a resolution of the Hanse Supreme Court, stating that from 1941 to 1945 all 364 items of the collection were the property of the Bremen Kunsthalle, the Minister said on Monday.

Moreover, according to Shvydkoy, "the issue concerning the award for the return of the collection has been also settled." If the collection is repatriated, 19 pictures and a canvas will remain in Russia, their value making a fourth of the collection's total value, the Minister noted.

On Monday, the Russian Ministry of Culture will forward the received documents to the Russian General Prosecutor's Office. The issue concerning the Baldin collection "goes in the dimension of court hearings," the Russian minister said. However, he refused to forecast when the collection would be returned to Germany.