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  • Hitler's Art Thief

  • Hildebrand Gurlitt, the Nazis, and the Looting of Europe's Treasures
  • Written by: Susan Ronald
  • Narrated by: Anne Flosnik
  • Length: 12 hrs and 55 mins
  • 5.0 out of 5 stars (1 rating)

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Hitler's Art Thief

Written by: Susan Ronald
Narrated by: Anne Flosnik
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Publisher's Summary

The world was stunned when 80-year old Cornelius Gurlitt became an international media superstar in November 2013 on the discovery of over 1,400 artworks in his 1,076 square-foot Munich apartment, valued at around $1.35 billion. Gurlitt became known as a man who never was - he didn't have a bank account, never paid tax, never received social security. He simply did not exist. He had been hard-wired into a life of shadows and secrecy by his own father long before he had inherited his art collection built on the spoliation of museums and Jews during Hitler's Third Reich. The ensuing media frenzy unleashed international calls for restitution, unsettled international relations, and rocked the art world.

Susan Ronald reveals in this stranger-than-fiction-tale how Hildebrand Gurlitt succeeded in looting in the name of the Third Reich, duping the Monuments Men and the Nazis alike. As an "official dealer" for Hitler and Goebbels, Hildebrand Gurlitt became one of the Third Reich's most prolific art looters. Yet he stole from Hitler, too, allegedly to save modern art. Hitler's Art Thief is the untold story of Hildebrand Gurlitt, who stole more than art - he stole lives, too.

©2015 Susan Ronald (P)2019 Tantor

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So many artworks still unaccounted for

This was a good book, and especially relevant for anyone interested in the fate and recovery of plundered artwork during WWII. I will admit it was a bit of a slog to get to the most interesting parts, about the actual art, as the book laid down Hitler’s interest in art, his rise to power and war history... but the book wouldn’t have made sense without it, and one always learns more about this sordid time. One thing I got, which I never really grasped before, was the restrictions placed on modern artists, and how they were forced to stop painting, unless they remained in Paris~ in which case they could continue to create new works, which Picasso did. The rationale was truly bizarre. The book was also insightful with regards to the timing of the stowing sway of plundered art in the salt mines. The way stashes of paintings have come to light in recent years is a central part of the story, and I think this is the first book to detail this.

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