New Initiative To Recover WWII Stolen Art

The World

For our Geo Quiz, we’re looking for a medieval European city on the Elbe River. It celebrated its 1200th birthday a few years ago.

This city is in what used to be communist East Germany. Today it’s the capital of the German state of Saxony-Anhalt.

This week, the city is hosting a group of art professionals from around the world, who are participating in something called the Provenance Research Training Program. Museum and auction house experts are learning new techniques in provenance research of Nazi looted art and other cultural property.

Magdeburg, Germany is the center of this training initiative.

Wesley Fisher, research director for the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany, says the new training program is the first of its kind and it’s an important step on the road to recovering some of the vast amount of stolen art still missing.

Will you support The World?

Without federal support, local stations, especially in rural and underserved areas, face deep cuts or even closure. Vital public service alerts, news, storytelling, and programming like The World will be impacted. The World has weathered many storms, and we remain steadfast in our commitment to being your trusted source for human-centered international news, shared with integrity and care. We believe public media is about truth and access for all. As an independent, nonprofit newsroom, we aren’t controlled by billionaire owners or corporations. We are sustained by listeners like you.

Now more than ever, we need your help to support our global reporting work and power the future of The World.