King Willem-Alexander is returning a painting bought by his grandmother after World War II to its rightful heirs.

The painting, The Hague woods with a view on the Huis ten Bosch palace by 17^th century artist Joris van der Haagen, was owned by a Jewish collector who was forced to give it up in 1942.

The painting ended up in the hands of a Dutch art trader in 1960 and was sold to queen Juliana, who was unaware of its origins, according to research by royal family art historians.

The German occupiers stole thousands of works of art from Jewish collectors during WWII and the king had asked experts to examine the royal collection and make sure no art of dubious origins is included.

Although one other work is thought to have come from a Jewish collector, it was sold before the occupation and cannot be considered stolen art, the art historians said.