By Krystal Branch
Robert Edsel wrote The Monuments Men book in an attempt to capture the determination of a group of individuals to salvage the finest art in Europe during the Second World War. They aimed at keeping it away from destruction and confiscation by Hitler and his Nazi fanatics. Though the name suggests that only men were involved, the narrative captures the contribution by women. This was a race where every minute counted.
There were no maps to indicate where the treasures would be found. Each person developed an own map from records recovered from bombed museums and cathedrals, secret notes and journals that were written by Rosa Valland. Rosa was an employee of the French museum who made a personal commitment to track the plunder in secret. She followed the hints from the rail yards to anything useful source. One of them was a given by a dentist during root canal.
Salvaging the artifacts in the prevailing conditions required a lot of sacrifice. The middle aged team abandoned their families for the sake of cultural treasure. The pieces of art were by such fellows as Michelangelo, Da Vinci, Van Eycks and other European painters. The art produced by these fellows was phenomenal.
While risking their lives during combat, the group had a single mission. They were to save as much culture as possible from destruction or pillaging by the army. It would have been a great loss if the treasures were to disappear during the war. They display understanding of the threat posed by the loss and are ready to do something to save the situation. They were trained curators, art scholars, educators, museum directors, architects and archivists.
Support for the mission came from President Roosevelt and General Eisenhower. However, they were not provided with gasoline, typewriters, vehicles or necessary authority. This would make their mission very difficult and only possible with determination and good will. The original mission was to ensure that essential structures were not bombed. This would change because they did not determine the course of combat. They shifted to rescuing items after bombing.
There was something unique in the character of each individual involved within the mission group. This is what kept them going and led to the ultimate sacrifice required for such a task. Some of the people lost their lives in the process.
It is worth noting that Hitler wanted to construct the largest museum in the world by collecting the best works during war. Immediately he invaded Poland, he began an attack on churches, private art collections and museums. This is how he got the finest art and hid it in remote castles and secret mines waiting for the war to end. He wanted to show that Aryan artists were superior to Jewish artists.
The perspective of World War II presented by The Monuments Men Book is unique from the plain historic narration. Beside the destruction and death that happened, there were personal sacrifices that went beyond conquest. This is a story that tells of determination and sacrifice for nationhood. A movie developed out of the book was released in 2013, December.
There were no maps to indicate where the treasures would be found. Each person developed an own map from records recovered from bombed museums and cathedrals, secret notes and journals that were written by Rosa Valland. Rosa was an employee of the French museum who made a personal commitment to track the plunder in secret. She followed the hints from the rail yards to anything useful source. One of them was a given by a dentist during root canal.
Salvaging the artifacts in the prevailing conditions required a lot of sacrifice. The middle aged team abandoned their families for the sake of cultural treasure. The pieces of art were by such fellows as Michelangelo, Da Vinci, Van Eycks and other European painters. The art produced by these fellows was phenomenal.
While risking their lives during combat, the group had a single mission. They were to save as much culture as possible from destruction or pillaging by the army. It would have been a great loss if the treasures were to disappear during the war. They display understanding of the threat posed by the loss and are ready to do something to save the situation. They were trained curators, art scholars, educators, museum directors, architects and archivists.
Support for the mission came from President Roosevelt and General Eisenhower. However, they were not provided with gasoline, typewriters, vehicles or necessary authority. This would make their mission very difficult and only possible with determination and good will. The original mission was to ensure that essential structures were not bombed. This would change because they did not determine the course of combat. They shifted to rescuing items after bombing.
There was something unique in the character of each individual involved within the mission group. This is what kept them going and led to the ultimate sacrifice required for such a task. Some of the people lost their lives in the process.
It is worth noting that Hitler wanted to construct the largest museum in the world by collecting the best works during war. Immediately he invaded Poland, he began an attack on churches, private art collections and museums. This is how he got the finest art and hid it in remote castles and secret mines waiting for the war to end. He wanted to show that Aryan artists were superior to Jewish artists.
The perspective of World War II presented by The Monuments Men Book is unique from the plain historic narration. Beside the destruction and death that happened, there were personal sacrifices that went beyond conquest. This is a story that tells of determination and sacrifice for nationhood. A movie developed out of the book was released in 2013, December.
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