The Venus Fixers: The Remarkable Story of the Allied Monuments Officers Who Saved Italy's Art During World War II

by Ilaria Dagnini Brey

In 1943, while the world was convulsed by war, a few visionaries—in the private sector and in the military—committed to protect Europe's cultural heritage from the indiscriminate ravages of battle.

And so the Allies appointed the Monuments Officers, a motley group of art historians, curators, architects, and artists, to ensure that the masterpieces of European art and architecture were not looted or bombed into oblivion. Often working as shellfire exploded around them, the Monuments Officers of Italy shored up tottering palaces and cathedrals, safeguarded Michelangelos and Giottos, and even blocked a Nazi convoy of stolen paintings bound for Göring's birthday celebration. Sometimes they failed. But to an astonishing degree they succeeded, and their story is an unparalleled adventure with the gorgeous tints of a Botticelli as its backdrop.

Genres: History, Art, Nonfiction, Art History, Italy, World War II, Biography

336 pages, Paperback

First published August 4, 2009

Reviews

[Steven Godin · Rating 4 out of 5]

An aspect of the war that I knew very little about; added to the fact I haven't seen The Monuments Men film, resulted in a thoroughly fascinating read. When pondering on WW2, or reading the countless other WW2 books I've read, never did I stop for one minute and think to myself - just what happened to all that historic art? Well, this book cetaintly goes some ways to explain all. Not too long whereas it becomes tiresome, but not too short where not enough depth is given. Hope to review properly when time is on my side.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Where the story of the Monuments Men was more about the art saved in France from the Nazis and looters this book is about the similar task done by specialists in Italy. This is about their experiences during the last days in Italy and the saving and rebuilding of Italian cities and their historical value.

It is a very detailed book albeit very dry in its content where the Monuments men book was made it bit more adventurous This writer has chosen for a more academic approach that is sometimes tough to read but at no moment boring.

For me this book was an eye-opener like the Monuments Men book was, some really remarkable men tried to save the treasures of our civilization and this is another book about them. This will never be filmed as a adventure movie but is a fascinating story nonetheless.

Well worth reading if you enjoy history of the beaten tracks and do enjoy art.

[Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Late last year I read The Monuments Men, by Robert Edsel and Brett Witter, that told the story of how the men assigned to the Subcommission for Monuments, Fine Art and Archives protected and rescued the great art treasures of Europe. The Monuments Men focused on the creation of the MFAA and the MFAA activities in France and Germany and was an excellent book that should appeal to anyone with an interest in military history or art. Unfortunately for Ms. Brey, I read The Monuments Men before I read The Venus Fixers. That is not to say that The Venus Fixers is not an excellent book, it is. And in some cases it is better than The Monuments Men. But during my reading of The Venus Fixers, I kept adversely comparing Ms. Brey's story and style with Messrs. Edsel and Witter. And that was not fair to Ms. Brey who had a different story to tell - and a different way to tell it.

The Venus Fixers tells the story of how a few dedicated American and British officers and Italian government officials were able to prevent the wholesale destruction and/or theft of the Italian art treasures. The Venus Fixers concentrates a large portion of the book on the activities in Florence and the general Tuscany area. Prior to reading this book, I knew that Tuscany in general and Florence in particular has a great treasure of paintings and sculpture. I also knew that Florence is a beautiful city with wonderful architecture and neighborhoods to wander in. What I didn't know was that Florence was so thoroughly destroyed during the war. I had no idea that all but one of the Florentine bridges over the Arno were destroyed as the Germans retreated from the city. Had the MFAA not existed or if the Venus Fixers had not been as dedicated to saving the art of Italy as they were, who knows what Florence would be today.

Near the end of the book, Ms. Brey relates, in an abbreviated way, the activities at the Altaussee salt mine in Austria. The happenings at the Altaussee mine were not directly involved in the activities of the MFAA officers that Ms. Brey's book chronicled. I suggest that those readers who may want more information about Alaussee to read The Monuments Men.

I hope to visit Florence with my wife later this year. I have looked forward to seeing the art and beauty of this city for a long time. After reading the description of what Florence was in 1944 - 45 and the work that went into saving the city's art and architecture in Ms. Brey's The Venus Fixers I will have a deeper appreciation for the beauty that awaits us. While we are in Florence, I plan to visit the grave of Frederick Hartt. Mr. Hartt was one of the Venus Fixers and for his work and dedication was made an honorary citizen of Florence.

I thoroughly enjoyed The Venus fixers and highly recommend it to lovers of art and history.

[Michael Gerald · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Art imitates nature as it can, as a pupil follows his master; this it is a sort of grandchild of God." - Dante Alighieri

While the West saved its art in Europe during the Second World War, it did not do so in the Philippines. Manila was also one of the most devastated cities after the war due mostly to US artillery; restored, albeit not in its original beauty before the war. Only shows how the Philippines was and is not important to the US. So better get rid of that so-called Mutual Defense Treaty.

[Dana · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was hard to get into this book- I felt like it jumped around between dates and cities at first, which made it difficult to keep track of and kept me from getting into the story. Parts of it were interesting, but I preferred Monuments Men more than this novel.

[Dan Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I feel so divided on this book. I found the exploration of the Italian front and the role that the Monument Men played fascinating, but I also found myself desperately wishing for a different publishing treatment. I wanted plates of the artwork in the parts of the book where that art was discussed. I wanted maps when geography was being discussed. I wanted the book to do more than throw a lot of place and painting names at me, but provide more context in places where the layman is likely to be unfamiliar. Is this an unrealistic expectation for a paperback? Perhaps. Is the hardback more fully fleshed out with these elements? I doubt it.

When the book discussed the conflicts between the Venus Fixers, the personality issues, the frustrations with red tape, the heartbreak of the task at hand, and the competing objectives of the military, I loved this book. It introduced me to a different side of World War II that I hadn't even considered before, and shone a light on the differences between the Italian population and the Fascist government that dragged them into the war.

I just wish that the book had either focused on the human side of the story, or provided sufficient art and map resources to support the more academic side.

[Kathleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've been doing my own little "unit study" on how art was protected during World War II.

This book covers a lot of the same ground as Robert Edsel's Saving Italy. It came out earlier and is better written and researched. What I also appreciate about Ilaria Dagnini Brey's book is that it gives more context regarding the art.

[Sheramy Bundrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anyone interested in Italian art should read this book. A real eye-opener.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you liked the Monuments Men (movie) about the WWII art-savers of northern Europe, you will enjoy this nonfiction about efforts to save the massive numbers of artworks throughout Italy. The book does a good job recognizing the importance of the Italian curators, church leaders, art lovers, etc., who did everything they could to get these precious works (paintings, statues, manuscripts, frescoes, etc.) out of the path of war. Without their efforts, there would not have been much for the Allies to save. The American and British "Venus Fixers" were in uniform, but they were older than most soldiers and had backgrounds at major universities and museums. Their dedication to the task of finding and saving thousands of works of art, often following so close to the moving front line that bullets were flying and bombs exploding, is amazing. When you are in Italy savoring the genius of the masters, consider what the world would be like if they had been obliterated by war.

[Dean Kephart · Rating 3 out of 5]

You must either really love Italian art of the history of WW II to fully engage in this research project. I got through it and have a real appreciation for the brave men that helped to save much of the priceless art that resides in Italy. I do have to say that it is aa tedious read with many details for names and places to keep in mind. At times, I just had to put it down, hence it took me longer to complete. It was a bit like reading a textbook for a class, but am glad I increased my knowledge of this horrible time of our history.

[Fernando Flores · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Venus Fixers is a very interesting book overall. I will say the beginning for me is a bit confusing and dull. He names paintings left and right. If you do not know the paintings you get confused fast. The paintings give meaning to the sentences so you need to look up how the paintings look. Takes time and makes the book tedious. If you know a lot of Italian art this book is for you. It brings you left in right in the action showing you what it too for the Venus fixers to save what they could in World War II. Deane Keller was a big character that grew on me. He was so determined to do what he could. He went around checking off pieces of art that were missing or were needing check up. Hartt also was a great character and know that both characters were real gives you this sense of amazement. These men lived and did what the book says. They helped preserve history and art that if not for them today could be missing or even be destroyed, never to be seen again. For that I honor these men and all who served in the war. The superintendents and the monument soldiers worked hard to save everything from looting to destruction. Together they worked to together, even though they had a rough time with communication, to find peace and safety. The superintendents deserve a big applause for their efforts to save everything when the government just gave them a short period to do so. They stayed strong and they never lost hope. I will read this book again to decipher every word because I feel as if there is a bigger meaning in this text then what you see the first time you read it. I would recommend for those looking to read about history and learn a thing or two of art to read this book.

[Jen · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was much more of a slog than I anticipated. Brey researched this topic thoroughly and seemed to be hell bent on imparting every bit of that knowledge to her readers. Ultimately, what happened was the feeling of reading a very dry history book. Lots of names, dates and facts with a lack of interesting connective tissue to engage the reader. Great topic and what felt like a lot wasted potential.

[Camille · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too much time was spent on the battles and not enough talking about the art or the men themselves. So many other people were mentioned that I got lost in all the names and details. Rarely does this happen, but I enjoyed the movie so much more than the book.

[Dustin · Rating 3 out of 5]

deeply researched, but the narrative disappears for long stretches in a wash of place names, artwork names, and people -- however, good to pair with "The Monuments Men" for a full overview of the European campaign

[Linda · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very well researched, I probably would have liked it more if I knew more about Italy's history and geography. Also more about the pictures and the artists. Also the writing style isn't the kind I prefer.

[George · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting, particularly if you have been to Rome and Florence

[Alison Mullin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Much better written than the Edsel books. More focused on the monuments than the "heros",and inclusive of the efforts of the Italians themselves.

[Bear · Rating 3 out of 5]

Super interesting history. Book was a bit boring. Watching Monuments Men is probably a more entertaining way to learn a bit about this unique part of WWII history.

[Tomi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although there were interesting parts, most of this book was boring.

[Nicole Mckairnes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well now I know what I'll be doing when WWIII breaks out.

[LillyBooks · Rating 3 out of 5]

I got this book because I was beginning to think Goodreads would break if I didn't, seeing as how it was recommending it for me in almost every single category. It's a good book. However, I've read both The Monuments Men and The Rape of Europa which are, to me, the gold standards for this particular subject matter. Nothing else can compete. Perhaps this book would be interesting to someone who was only or heavily interested in Italian art instead of the broad sweep of all European art.

[Suzanne · Rating 2 out of 5]

During World War II, one of the difficulties faced by the allied forces lay in the fact that priceless works of art and ancient architectural structures of cultural importance often became damaged or destroyed due to the fighting. No country had more at stake in this area than Italy. Early on, Italians (regardless of which side they were allied to) strove to remove and safeguard tens of thousands of art pieces, hiding them away in county villas and even in the Vatican. And surprisingly, the US Armed Forces took the danger that an Allied Invasion into Italy would have on Italian art during the planning stages. Ms. Brey told how hundreds of art experts were called upon on the US to put together a master list of buildings and artifacts that needed to be spared if possible. "The Monuments Men" were in charge of making sure bombs were carefully targeted away from such treasures, and teams of restorers were on hand to save any pieces that had become damaged. It was a monumental task.

This is a subject that fascinates me, and although Ms. Brey's book was not as enjoyable and didn't flow as well as Robert Edsel's The Monument's Men, I appreciated the focus on Italy and was able to learn something new from this book. 2 1/2 stars.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

An illuminating history of a little known aspect of WWII in Italy- the Allied effort to preserve and restore as much as they could of Italy's cultural heritage.

General Clark compared the Allied campaign in Italy to having a war "in a goddamn art museum". With its rich cultural heritage, Italy stood to lose irreplaceable art and buildings as the Allies fought the Germans in Sicily and on the peninsula. Fortunately, the Allies realized this early in the war and began planning on how not to inflict more damage on the art and monuments of Italy than was necessary, and more importantly, how to pick up the pieces after the battles were won. (There were some failures, such as the abbey at Monte Cassino, but on the whole it's more remarkable how successful the effort was.)

The book follows the monument officers' daunting task of finding missing artwork, cataloging damaged and scattered archives, and restoring and rebuilding often appalling damage. This book is not for everyone, but for anyone who has been to Italy or students of art history, it may interest you to know how much effort went into trying to save Italy's art and architecture during a vicious war.

[Lianne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a combination of a historical work about World War II in Italy, a detective story and a suspense novel. It tells the story of the Monuments Officers in the Allied Forces who tried to save and restore Italian art. The popular novel "The English Patient" was set in Monte Cassino, one of the tragic recipients of Allied Bombing. The clashes in style and personality between individuals who served in this capacity are developed. The detective aspect is the way that they worked to find out where the treasures were being hidden by the Italians and the Germans. because there was concern that Hitler wanted to seize certain works for his own legacy museum that he hoped to build in Linz, Austria, there was an urgency to take the art into protective custody before the Germans took it too far north. Intrigue between the Italian Fascists, the Vatican, the Germans and the Allies provides suspense. Very detailed research by the author but the writing style seems turgid at times.

[Barry · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book documented the saving of Italy's art during WWII. If someone helped in hiding the art, moving the art, or touching the art, he was credited. This was a very detailed, and very dry, rendering which could only interest an art historian.

There were occasional chapters outlining some of the efforts by British and American Monument Men and Italian art superintendents to save or restore damaged art (which included the fate of cathedrals and other important architectural structures) and prevent looting by Nazis that read well. I learned a lot, but, the descriptions breaking down each person's movements, motivation and history of the artwork were tedious.

Fine as the recording of the complete history of the efforts to save Italy's heritage, the author, Ilaaria Dagnini Brey, could take some lessons from more accomplished non-fiction writers like Eric Larson, John Berry and David McCullough whose works make you want to turn the page.

I learned

[Raven · Rating 4 out of 5]

I expected to learn a good deal about Italian art here, but I was delighted by how much I learned about Italian history and geography in passing. Thorough in its coverage of Tuscan and Florentine art history and rehabilitation, some of the particular tidbits of interest in the work show up merely in passing. (Coverage of how the homosexuality of some of the corps members was pointedly Not Discussed was particularly interesting; I hadn't given a lot of thought to their personal lives, but of course that would have been a property of the era. As if war wasn't difficult enough!) Reading this book inspired an interest in visiting Italy, though I think I'd have a lot more reading to do before I went. From the Nazis to the Borgias, architecture to archaeology, there's a lot to be learned in a short and chaotic time. I have already loaned it to an art-loving friend, two minutes after I finished.

[Elizabeth Kennedy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is very comprehensive work based on the soldiers who were specifically chosen to save the cultural history in Italy during WWII. Some of it was very dry and some of it listing the Italian name for places made it harder to understand where the story was taking place. But there were wonderful anecdotes about how the art was dispersed,saved and recovered. There were great personalities introduced and the bravery these "monuments men" had was clearly outlined. What was extremely interesting to me was the thin line they walked between saving something light "the Last Supper" or people's lives, saving "David" or allowing the bombs to come through that would further cripple the German Army. How these decisions were made and to what extent the Venus Fixers were willing to extend themselves was amazing. It was also heart breaking to read of the culture we did lose forever and interesting to think about what still might be out there to be found.

[Janine · Rating 3 out of 5]

a very dense book with lots of detail about the personalities and skills of each member of the Venus Fixer crew. anyone who appreciates the intricacies of truly beautiful masterworks will enjoy reading about the knowledge, passion, and dedication to preservation that these individuals possessed. despite the difficulty i had getting through some of the detail (it's not a story; it's more of a report), i did find myself at times gasping and almost crying when i tried to imagine some of the situations these men encountered. again, although it was not easy to read, it did inspire in me a new curiousity about frescoes, colors, italy, and art. if you are at all interested in italy or in the works of the masters, this is a fascinating read.

[Warren Kaplan · Rating 5 out of 5]

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 book to read.

[Jojo Clemente · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very interesting account of how a determined group of scholar-soldiers pulled from different walks of life were called on to preserve and rebuild works of art affected during World War II.

This is also a study of how precarious the balance is between culture and warfare and how humanity perseveres through adverse periods.

One can get bogged down with the immense number of personalities and locales covered but what shines through are the stories of how priceless works of art and architecture were saved due to admirable efforts of extraordinary people.

While Monuments Men got more attention than this book, Venus Fixers is by no means a lesser work.