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‘Quartered in the midst of the greatest collection in all Italy’: lessons from the Museo Nazionale di Napoli in wartime
Nigel Pollard 
Archaeology, Cultural Heritage and World War II:
Swansea University Author:
Nigel Pollard
Abstract
The experiences of the Museo Nazionale di Napoli in the Second World War provide a case study in microcosm of the dilemmas and risks faced by museums in conflict. Its curators faced decisions over how best to protect its collections in the face of a range of potential threats that were resolved by a...
| Published in: | Archaeology, Cultural Heritage and World War II: |
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| Published: |
Leiden
Brill
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| URI: | https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa64567 |
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| Abstract: |
The experiences of the Museo Nazionale di Napoli in the Second World War provide a case study in microcosm of the dilemmas and risks faced by museums in conflict. Its curators faced decisions over how best to protect its collections in the face of a range of potential threats that were resolved by a combination of in situ protection and evacuation. Perhaps surprisingly, given the bomb damage suffered by other heritage sites in the historic centre of Naples, the museum and the portion of its collections that stayed with it remained unscathed, and even the British military occupation of the museum in December 1943 to June 1944 provided some positive lessons for the protection of cultural property in wartime. In contrast, the evacuated portion of the collections faced much greater risks, including the bombing of its refuge at the abbey of Montecassino, partial theft by German troops, and damage in transit. These experiences provide parallels with, and lessons for, the treatment of museum collections in modern conflicts. |
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| Keywords: |
art protection, cultural heritage, cultural property protection, Montecassino, Monuments Men, Monuments, Fine Arts and Archives, Museum studies, Naples history, Second World War. |
| College: |
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences |