Description
Object description
Ms diary (5 November 1945 - 22 October 1947) in four small volumes kept by her as a semi-official record of the day to day business of the Monuments, Fine Arts and Archives Branch of the Control Commission, Germany (CCG) in Bunde detailing telephone conversations, discussions in person, staff movements and developments relating to the restoration to the correct owners/repositories of works of art and archives. As a member of the small staff of this branch, her descriptions give an excellent insight into the complications and massive quantities involved. Among the visitors to the Branch was Anthony Blunt (December 1945) and among subjects discussed are the Blohm & Voss archive (29 August 1946), Hitler's bust for the Imperial War Museum (1 May 1946) and the Schaumburg-Lippe collection (passim).
The reference to IWM acquiring a bust of Adolf Hitler is interesting: the Trustees of the Imperial War Museum had noted in a meeting on 3 September 1945 that 'they did not wish to acquire busts or portraits of Hitler, or other Nazi leaders from the German embassy'. No evidence has yet been found that the bust mentioned by Popham on 1 May 1946 was indeed acquired. (EN2 1 COB 004 6)
Content description
Ms diary (5 November 1945 - 22 October 1947) in four small volumes kept by her as a semi-official record of the day to day business of the Monuments, Fine Arts and Archives Branch of the Control Commission, Germany (CCG) in Bunde detailing telephone conversations, discussions in person, staff movements and developments relating to the restoration to the correct owners/repositories of works of art and archives. As a member of the small staff of this branch, her descriptions give an excellent insight into the complications and massive quantities involved. Among the visitors to the Branch was Anthony Blunt (December 1945) and among subjects discussed are the Blohm & Voss archive (29 August 1946), Hitler's bust for the Imperial War Museum (1 May 1946) and the Schaumburg-Lippe collection (passim).
The reference to IWM acquiring a bust of Adolf Hitler is interesting: the Trustees of the Imperial War Museum had noted in a meeting on 3 September 1945 that 'they did not wish to acquire busts or portraits of Hitler, or other Nazi leaders from the German embassy'. No evidence has yet been found that the bust mentioned by Popham on 1 May 1946 was indeed acquired. (EN2 1 COB 004 6)
History note
Cataloguer PHR
History note
Catalogue date 1987-03