Recovery of Looted Art in Berchtesgaden 1945

Description

Recovery of looted art in Berchtesgaden 1945; Photo; Licensed item; Original: 5740×4315; Photographer: Unknown; Licensable; Rights: 9 Bleek/zb Media. The photo shows the recovery of looted art from Hermann Göring’s collection by the US Army and the Monuments Men in Berchtesgaden in June 1945. US soldiers carry paintings, sculptures, and artworks to a truck to secure and transport them. Harry Anderson, an officer of the Monuments Men responsible for the protection and restitution of looted art, is also visible in the picture. The paintings, altars, and sculptures were found in a freight train and further in a tunnel in the Untersberg, in the former Führer restricted area Obersalzberg. The artworks are from the private collection of Hermann Göring, who plundered works across Europe. The recovery was part of the restitution of stolen cultural property after World War II. From Berchtesgaden, they were taken to the Central Collecting Point in Munich. The photo documents the rescue of significant artworks looted by the Nazis and the role of the Monuments Men in preserving European cultural heritage.