Frederick Hartt

“Hartt wrote six or so seminal textbooks that are read by literally thousands of undergraduate students all around the world. They led me to Florentine Art Under Fire, which is Hartt’s memoir of his time as an officer working for the Monuments, Fine Arts and Archives Commission during World War II. These officers were assigned to protect the art of Florence and the area around it from war damage, and Hartt’s book is a very dramatic and heart-wrenching account of his activities in Florence as the Allies were moving in. They were one side of the Arno river and the Nazis were on the other side. The Nazis had laid mines around Florence and there was a danger they were going to blow up most of the city as they retreated. There was some very serious fighting right in the centre of the city and the major loss was the Ponte Santa Trinita, a 16th century bridge designed by Bartolomeo Ammanati that many people consider far more beautiful than the Ponte Vecchio. The Germans blew it up. They also destroyed a section of the city just across from the Ponte Vecchio in order to try to block the bridge with debris. They were not allowed to damage the Ponte Vecchio, though, because it was one of Hitler’s favourite works.” Read more...

The best books on Art Crime

Noah Charney, Novelist