Seyffardt was a Dutch general who commanded a Waffen-SS unit of volunteers on the eastern front before he was assassinated by resistance fighters in 1943.
Shortly after learning he was related to Nazi collaborator, the man approached his grandmother to ask about the painting’s history.
She is said to have told him it had been purchased during World War Two and that it was “Jewish looted art, stolen from Goudstikker. It is unsellable. Don’t tell anyone.”
The family, which changed their name at the end of the war, have admitted being in possession of the painting but denied knowing its true origin, according to a statement to Dutch media.
After learning of the painting’s history, the family member contacted Brand through an intermediary, believing the only way for it to be returned was for the story to be made public.
The family member told Dutch outlet De Telegraaf: “I feel ashamed. The painting should be returned to the heirs of Goudstikker.”
In a statement to the same newspaper, his grandmother said: “I received it from my mother.
“Now that you confront me like this, I understand that Goudstikker’s heirs want the painting back. I didn’t know that.”