[MSN] Rescuing Da Vinci, a new book by author Robert Edsel, reveals, for the first time, the exploits of a band of unsung heroes, known as the Monuments Men, in rescuing and safeguarding the world's greatest artworks.

[Museum Security Network Mailinglist]

Rescuing Da Vinci and Other Hidden Treasures

Rescuing Da Vinci, a new book by author Robert Edsel, reveals, for the first
time, the exploits of a band of unsung heroes, known as the Monuments Men,
in rescuing and safeguarding the world's greatest artworks.
 
A painting by Leonardo Da Vinci is stolen; another by Caravaggio is
destroyed; and a portrait of Raphael - along with thousands of other works
of art - is still missing. 

During and following World War II, a special multinational group of more
than 400 men and women, who despite great peril and risk of life and limb,
served behind enemy lines and joined frontline military units to ensure the
preservation, protection, liberation and restitution of the world's greatest
artistic and cultural treasures. 

This "band of unsung heroes," referred to as the "Monuments Men," worked
tirelessly to track down, identify and catalogue millions of priceless works
of art and irreplaceable cultural artifacts - including masterpieces by Da
Vinci, Michelangelo, Rembrandt and Vermeer - that had been stolen by Hitler
and the Nazis.

Robert Edsel, author of "Rescuing Da Vinci," explains how he compiled the
first photographic telling of the amazing story of Hitler and the Nazi theft
of Europe's greatest art - and the rescue and recovery of it. He tells the
full story of the "Monuments Men," including their heroics and exploits in
rescuing and safeguarding many of the world's greatest artworks for the
benefit of mankind. It's a story that has never before been fully revealed
until now.

"During and after WWII, the Monuments Men tracked-down, safeguarded and
catalogued millions of stolen works of irreplaceable and priceless artistic
and cultural treasures, including masterpieces by Da Vinci, Michelangelo and
Rembrandt," said Edsel, formerly a nationally ranked professional tennis
player, as well as an extremely successful business entrepreneur in the oil
and gas industry, who sold his company and moved to Europe with his family
in 1996. 

While in Florence, he developed a great passion for art and architecture and
became curious as to how all the monuments and great works of art survived
the devastation of World War II? What began as a question evolved into an
impassioned journey to unravel the secrets and heroics of the unsung heroes
who saved the world's greatest art and cultural treasures for the benefit of
humanity. 

"There is no museum or cultural institution in the world that has not
benefited from their heroism and altruism. Very few of the Monuments Men are
still living, and it would be unforgivable for the recognition they so
justly deserve to be given posthumously," said Edsel.

In addition to his book, "Rescuing Da Vinci," Edsel has formed a
not-for-profit foundation to honor modern day "Monuments Men," is lobbying
Congress to appropriately honor and recognize the "Monuments Men," and has
co-produced a documentary on the subject which will air on PBS in April
2007.

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