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Salvate Venere!: La Storia Sconosciuta Dei Soldati Alleati Che Salvarono Le Opere D'arte Italiane Nella Seconda Guerra Mondiale (2010)

by Ilaria Dagnini Brey(Favorite Author)

3.74 of 5 Votes: 2

ISBN

8804601922 (ISBN13: 9788804601920)

languge

English

genre

History & Biography

publisher

Mondadori

review 1: Ilaria Dagnini Brey has written a wonderfully researched book about the heroic efforts of relatively few people that most of us never knew about. Those few who risked so much to save and preserve the brilliance of human civilization's beauty and creativity from the utter brutality of that same civilization playing out in the form of World War II in Italy. Centuries of priceless art (both financially and spirtually) were taken from museums and hidden before the Nazi hoardes either destroyed it or plundered it.The book, although heavily researched, reads like an adventure story and is a pleasure to read. I read it in a couple of days. For those of you who'd like to learn about a heroic part of World War II away from bullets, bombs and generals, this is certainly a terrific b... moreook to read.
review 2: "Art imitates nature as it can, as a pupil follows his master; this it is a sort of grandchild of God." - Dante AlighieriA great complement to the book, "The Monuments Men" by Robert Edsel, "The Venus Fixers" reveals how in the conflagration and savagery of the Second World War, the Americans and the British endeavored to salvage damaged works of art, architecture, and archives and prevent the destruction of others, mostly in Europe. Sadly, the destruction was not only due to the depravity of the Nazis and the Japanese, but also to Allied bombing and the chaos of war. Fortunately, the Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives Section of the US Army (MFAA) was there. Composed mostly of officers who were art and history professors, architects, and museum curators in civilian life, the unit did a magnificent job of giving first aid to priceless works and undo the damage.But credit goes not only to the Allied men (and some women). In the case of Italy, several Italian superintendents of art (some, ironically, members of the Fascist regime), priests, and other civilians also performed their jobs well and protected their country's cultural treasures. And their partnership with the MFAA was to prove crucial in the success of the restoration of those works. Through their efforts, given the limited personnel, budget, and limitations in command and control, the outcome of the efforts of MFAA and the Italians can never be understated. That Florence, Pisa, Siena, and other Italian cities and their churches, statues, paintings have been restored is due to those principled men.I wonder if there were also MFAA officers who worked in the Pacific during the war, considering that Manila was also one of the most devastated cities after the war; restored, albeit not in its original beauty before the war. That's why I don't shed a tear for Hiroshima and Nagasaki.And now, Syria's cultural treasures - not to mention its people - are being ravaged by a vicious war. less

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