The displacement of cultural goods in the context of the Belgian Möbelaktion: (in)formal channels and art market actors

In January 1942, the German occupation authorities in Belgium launched the Möbelaktion, a confiscation campaign that seized entire Jewish households and transferred their contents to Germany. While the operation has been studied in several West European countries, the displacement of cultural goods in the Belgian context remains insufficiently explored.

This contribution examines how cultural objects were displaced through the Belgian Möbelaktion, adopting a broad perspective that incorporates related programs, such as the Liftvan-Aktion. Drawing on a series of case studies, it reconstructs the trajectories of cultural goods and identifies the German and Belgian actors involved in their seizure, storage, sorting, sale, and disposal. Particular attention is paid to the victims’ perspective. The analysis demonstrates that the fate of cultural assets was shaped by a complex interplay of official and unofficial practices, resulting in outcomes far less predictable than the occupiers’ administrative plans suggested.