A woman attacked two works of art at a controversial Berlin exhibition given by the heir of a convicted Nazi industrialist and then shouted she forgave their owner.
The exhibition, opened by Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder on Tuesday, shows contemporary works from the 2,500-piece collection of millionaire Mr Friedrich Christian Flick.
Mr Flick's grandfather employed up to 50,000 forced labourers and concentration camp inmates in his coal, steel and armaments factories.
The show has stoked a fierce row over Mr Flick's failure to pay into compensation funds for forced labourers, with some Nazi victims' groups saying "blood money" has financed the collection and that Mr Flick wants to "whitewash" his family history.
The woman (35), whose name was given only as Sonia H., leapt onto a three-dimensional artwork late last night and trampled on it. Then she overturned a construction made up of graffiti-sprayed car body work. "Flick, I forgive you", she screamed.
A police spokesman said the woman had been charged with criminal damage after both works were seriously damaged.
A German artist group has also been demonstrating against the exhibition with a hoax poster programme offering free entry to forced labourers.
Mr Schroeder defended Mr Flick in his opening speech on Tuesday, saying he should not be held responsible for his family's war crimes and had taken account of his historical responsibility.