Anne Rothfeld

Evelyn Tucker, a Museum, Fine Arts, and Archives (MFA&A) Representative, worked in U.S. military occupied Austria, investigating and restituting Nazi plundered Austrian-owned cultural property from 1946 to 1949. This grant supports travel to Austrian and German archives, and American museums to explore primary source materials that remain underutilized in the quest to bring Eve Tucker’s work to the forefront. The project aims to broaden the conceptualizations of restitutions and the differing narratives surrounding the investigations. A firebrand, Tucker carved an ethical path to restitute Austrian cultural property to the rightful owners as she encountered corrupt military practices. Her meticulous and colorful reports and correspondence provide a rich and nuanced story; and personify Tucker’s own mixture of an appreciation for the beauty of fine arts, and a healthy dose of realism with a hint of guarded enthusiasm.