Karl Kress: Photographer for the ERR and the Third U.S. Army MFA&A Special Evacuation Team

Today's post is written by Dr. Greg Bradsher, Senior Archivist at the National Archives in College Park, MD. On June 14, 1945 1st Lt. Stephen Kovalyak, a Monuments, Fine Arts and Archives (MFA&A) officer, came to Alt Aussee, Austria with Lt. George Stout, USNR, another MFA&A officer, with the 12th Army Group, to evacuate the looted … Continue reading Karl Kress: Photographer for the ERR and the Third U.S. Army MFA&A Special Evacuation Team

Monuments Man Thomas Carr Howe, Jr. and the Evacuation and Restitution of European Cultural Treasures

Today’s post, written by Dr. Greg Bradsher, is the next installment in an ongoing series of posts on real-life Monuments Men. The movie, The Monuments Men, has focused great attention on the Monuments Men (and women) and their work during and after World War II.  Of course the movie cannot tell the story of the over … Continue reading Monuments Man Thomas Carr Howe, Jr. and the Evacuation and Restitution of European Cultural Treasures

Terence A. Coyne: An Office of Strategic Services’ Art Looting Investigation Unit Monuments Man

Today’s post, written by  Dr. Greg Bradsher, is the next installment in an ongoing series of posts on real-life Monuments Men. The movie, The Monuments Men, has focused great attention on the Monuments Men (and women) and their work during and after World War II.  Of course the movie cannot tell the story of the over … Continue reading Terence A. Coyne: An Office of Strategic Services’ Art Looting Investigation Unit Monuments Man

Monuments Man Charles H. Sawyer, part II: Double Duty for the Roberts Commission and the OSS

Today's post was written by Dr. Greg Bradsher, senior archivist at the National Archives in College Park, MD. The movie, The Monuments Men, has focused great attention on the Monuments Men (and women) and their work during and after World War II.  Of course the movie cannot tell the story of the over 300 individuals involved … Continue reading Monuments Man Charles H. Sawyer, part II: Double Duty for the Roberts Commission and the OSS

Monuments Man Charles H. Sawyer, part I: Member of the U.S Army, the Office of Strategic Services, and the American Commission for the Protection and Salvage of Artistic and Historic Monuments in War Areas

Today’s post, written by  Dr. Greg Bradsher, is the next installment in an ongoing series of posts on real-life Monuments Men. The movie, The Monuments Men, has focused great attention on the Monuments Men (and women) and their work during and after World War II.  Of course the movie cannot tell the story of the over … Continue reading Monuments Man Charles H. Sawyer, part I: Member of the U.S Army, the Office of Strategic Services, and the American Commission for the Protection and Salvage of Artistic and Historic Monuments in War Areas

Before She Became The Ardelia Hall of the Department of State, Part II: Miss Hall as Consultant with the Department of State

Today's post was written by Dr. Greg Bradsher, Senior Archivist at the National Archives in College Park, MD. On October 6, 1945, the day Ardelia Hall was terminated from the Strategic Services Unit, she met with Charles B. Sawyer regarding the translation of Japanese laws regarding arts and monuments and concerning the formation of a working … Continue reading Before She Became The Ardelia Hall of the Department of State, Part II: Miss Hall as Consultant with the Department of State

Before She Became The Ardelia Hall of the Department of State, Part I: Miss Hall and the Office of Strategic Services

Today's post was written by Dr. Greg Bradsher, Senior Archivist at the National Archives in College Park, MD. Anyone studying World War II and postwar issues regarding cultural property knows the name Ardelia Hall, either because they know of her work as Monuments and Fine Arts adviser at the Department of State from 1946 to 1962 and/or … Continue reading Before She Became The Ardelia Hall of the Department of State, Part I: Miss Hall and the Office of Strategic Services

Wintergarden by Manet was NOT Looted by the Nazis

Today's post is written by Dr. Greg Bradsher, Senior Archivist at the National Archives at College Park. In 1912 David C. Preyer wrote in his book The Art of the Berlin Galleries that the then Royal National Gallery did not until 1896 make any effort to add foreign works to its collection.  In taking the reader through … Continue reading Wintergarden by Manet was NOT Looted by the Nazis

National Archives Hosts International Research Portal for Records Related to Nazi-Era Cultural Property

Today’s post is written by Chris Naylor, Director of Textual Records for Research Services, Washington DC. The Nazis and their collaborators engaged in widespread and systematic confiscation of art and cultural property between 1933 and 1945 through various means including theft, coercion, and forced sales. These activities resulted in the displacement of millions of items … Continue reading National Archives Hosts International Research Portal for Records Related to Nazi-Era Cultural Property

Archivist Monuments Man: Lester K. Born

Today’s post, written by  Dr. Greg Bradsher, is the next installment in an ongoing series of posts on real-life Monuments Men. The movie, The Monuments Men, has focused great attention on the Monuments Men (and women) and their work during and after World War II.  Of course the movie cannot tell the story of the over … Continue reading Archivist Monuments Man: Lester K. Born