The Philadelphia Museum returns a historic ceremonial shield confiscated by the Nazis to the Czech Republic. Since this country was a war victim and suffered throughout the WWs, taking the stolen item back home is only fair.
The Philadelphia Museum of Art in the United States has transported a 16th-century ceremonial shield confiscated by the Nazis during World War II to the Czech Republic. The item was in the mentioned exhibit for centuries, according to ISNA news station and Returns.
The engravings of this historic shield are said to have been created by the Italian Renaissance artist Girolama da Troiso and depict a scene from a Roman battle. Historians of the Philadelphia Museum believe that this shield was for celebrations after the victory in battle.
The Nazis confiscated this item, this shield, between 1938 and 1939.
The shield, which experts believe dates back to 1535, was removed from the museum’s collection in 1976 when a tobacco merchant donated it to the Philadelphia Museum and has been on display in the museum’s weapons and armor section since the 1970s.
The Museum officials began determining the ownership of the shield in 2016 with the cooperation of the Czech Republic. Archduke Franz Ferdinand, whose assassination in 1914 sparked the outbreak of World War I, owned a collection of weapons and armor housed in a castle south of Prague. After World War I, the Czechoslovak government took ownership of the fort.
The carvings of this well-known shield are said to have been created by the Italian Renaissance artist Girolama da Troiso and represent a scene from a Roman battle. Historians of the mentioned Museum believe that this shield was for celebrations after the victory in battle.
With the outbreak of World War II, Germany also seized a set of weapons by seizing the area where the castle was located. As a result, the Philadelphia Museum agreed to return the work to the Czech Republic.