Records of the National Archives and Records Administration Relating to Nazi-Era Cultural Property
The records made available on the Portal from the U.S. National Archives (NARA) include over 2.3 million pages of documents created or received by the U.S. Government during and after World War II as part of its investigations into cultural assets that were looted or otherwise lost during the war. All of the records have been described in NARA's online catalog. Many of the records have additionally been digitized and made available for free online by our partner Fold3.com (Holocaust Era Assets records). The records are primarily in English, although some seized records are in German or other languages. There are no privacy or other access restrictions on the records.
The images below direct the user to the National Archives online catalog, which provides both a description of each corresponding series of records and a URL in the online resource section for the digitized records on Fold3. The additional links that accompany each image direct the user to the microfilm/digital publication pamphlet as well as to the digitized records either on Fold3 or in NARA's online catalog.
- Central Collecting Points Records
- Einsatzstab Reichsleiter Rosenberg (ERR) Records
- World War II War Crimes Records
- Office of Military Government, United States (OMGUS) Records
- Office of Strategic Services (OSS) Records
- Roberts Commission Records
- U.S. Allied Commission for Austria (USACA) Records
- Safehaven Records
- Presidential Advisory Commission on Holocaust Assets in the United States
Central Collecting Points Records
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Records Concerning the Central Collecting Points ("Ardelia Hall Collection"): Miscellaneous Property Reports, 1945-1948 Record Group 260; Descriptive Pamphlet #M1940 (6 rolls). Description available in NARA's online catalog. Digital images available on Fold3. On the six rolls of this microfilm publication are reproduced approximately 6,000 property cards and accompanying survey reports regarding German repositories that stored Nazi-confiscated works of art. |
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Records Concerning the Central Collecting Points ("Ardelia Hall Collection"): OMGUS Headquarters Records, 1938-1951 Record Group 260; Descriptive Pamphlet #M1941 (45 rolls). Description available in NARA's online catalog. Digital images available on Fold3. On the 45 rolls of this microfilm publication are reproduced the general records, activity reports, and restitution and custody receipts of the Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives (MFAA) Section as distributed to the Headquarters of Office of Military Government, U.S. Zone (Germany) [OMGUS]. These records consist of intelligence reports, interrogation reports, captured documents, and general information regarding German art looting. |
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Records Concerning the Central Collecting Points ("Ardelia Hall Collection"): Offenbach Archival Depot, 1946-1951 Record Group 260; Descriptive Pamphlet #M1942 (13 rolls). Description available in NARA's online catalog. Digital images available on Fold3 (in two categories: Administrative Records and Photographs). On the 13 rolls of this microfilm publication are reproduced the records of the Offenbach Archival Depot. These consist of administrative records, cultural object restitution and custody records, correspondence relating to restitution claims, monthly reports, and photographs of library bookplates and markings. |
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Records Concerning the Central Collecting Points ("Ardelia Hall Collection"): Munich Central Collecting Point, 1945-1951 Record Group 260; Descriptive Pamphlet #M1946 (334 rolls). Description available in NARA's online catalog. Digital images available on Fold3 (in three categories: Munich Administrative Records, Munich Photos and Munich Property Cards). On the 334 rolls of this microfilm publication are reproduced the administrative records, property cards, and photographs of artworks and of activities from the Munich Central Collecting Point during the period 1945-51. The Monuments, Fine Arts and Archives (MFAA) Section recovered Nazi-looted works of art and artifacts from various storage areas and shipped the objects to one of four U.S. central collecting points, including Munich. In order to research restitution claims, the MFAA officers gathered intelligence reports, interrogation reports, captured documents, and general information regarding German art looting. The Munich records are part of the "Ardelia Hall Collection" in Records of United States Occupation Headquarters, World War II, Record Group (RG) 260. |
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Records Concerning the Central Collecting Points ("Ardelia Hall Collection"): Wiesbaden Central Collecting Point, 1945-1952 Record Group 260; Descriptive Pamphlet #M1947 (117 rolls). Description available in NARA's online catalog. Digital images available on Fold3 (in three categories: Administrative Records, Photographs and Property Cards). On 117 rolls of this microfilm publication are reproduced the administrative records, photographs of artworks, and property cards from the Wiesbaden Central Collecting Point during the period 1945-52. The Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives (MFAA) Section recovered Nazi-looted works of art and artifacts from various storage areas and shipped the objects to one of four U.S. central collecting points, including Wiesbaden. In order to research restitution claims, MFAA officers gathered intelligence reports, interrogation reports, captured documents, and general information regarding German art looting. The Wiesbaden records are part of the "Ardelia Hall Collection" in Records of United States Occupation Headquarters, World War II, Record Group (RG) 260. |
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Records Concerning the Central Collecting Points ("Ardelia Hall Collection"): Marburg Central Collecting Point, 1945-1949 Record Group 260; Descriptive Pamphlet #M1948 (28 rolls). Description available in NARA's online catalog. Digital images available on Fold3 (in two categories: Administrative Records and Property Cards). On the 28 rolls of this microfilm publication are reproduced the records of the Marburg Central Collecting Point, 1945-1949. They consist of general administrative records, Marburg Central Collecting Point property accessions, the directory of Marburg Central Collecting Point property released to the Wiesbaden Central Collecting Point, and photographs. |
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Records Concerning the Central Collecting Points ("Ardelia Hall Collection"): Selected Microfilm Reproductions and Related Records, 1945-1949 Record Group 260; Descriptive Pamphlet #A3389 (76 rolls). Description vailable in NARA's online catalog. Digital images available on Fold3. On the 76 rolls of this microfilm publication are reproduced an original set of microfilms consisting of selected files from the restitution records of the central collecting points, along with a number of documents and manuscripts temporarily in State Department custody after the central collecting points of the Office of Military Government, U.S. Zone (Germany) [OMGUS] were closed. A copy of the original microfilm was transferred to the National Archives from the State Department with the central collecting point files. The microfilm and additional records of the central collecting points are located in the Records of United States Occupation Headquarters, World War II, Record Group (RG) 260. |
Einsatzstab Reichsleiter Rosenberg (ERR) Records
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The Einsatzstab Reichsleiter Rosenberg (ERR) Photographic Album Collection at the National Archives and Records Administration Collection REMM. Description and digital images available in NARA's online catalog. A collection of albums containing photographs of cultural property that was looted by the Einsatzstab Reichsleiter Rosenberg (ERR) during World War II. These albums were donated to the National Archives by Robert Edsel and the Monuments Men Foundation and are now part of the National Archives and described in greater detail here. |
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Einsatzstab Reichsleiter Rosenberg (ERR) Card File and Related Photographs, 1940-1945 Record Group 260; Descriptive Pamphlet #M1943 (40 rolls). Description available in NARA's online catalog. Digital images available on Fold3. On the 40 rolls of this microfilm publication are reproduced the card file, interpositives, and photographic prints from the Einsatzstab Reichsleiter Rosenberg (ERR), 1940-1945. The card file and photographic materials are part of the Records of United States Occupation Headquarters, World War II, Record Group (RG) 260. Also included is a collection of 39 albums containing photographs of cultural property that was looted by the Einsatzstab Reichsleiter Rosenberg (ERR) during World War II. Seized by the United States Army in 1945 and subsequently submitted as an United States exhibit at the International Military Tribunal at Nuremberg, these records are now part of the National Archives and described in greater detail here. |
World War II War Crimes Records
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Records from the series "Reference Documents Received from American and Foreign Sources, 1945-1947" containing material relating to World War II-era art looting Record Group 238 Description and digital images available in NARA's online catalog. Included in these digitized records are reports, rosters, lists, sworn statements, and photographs relating to the Einsatzstab Reichsleiter Rosenberg (ERR); art dealers and other individuals involved in art looting activities including Robert Scholz, Bruno Lohse, Gisela Limberger, Gustav Rochlitz, Karl Kress, Guenther Schiedlausky, Karl Haberstock, Ernst Buchner, Walter Fleischer, Adolf Weinmüller, Hermann Voss, and Hildebrand Gurlitt; interrogations of individuals involved in art looting; and looted cultural objects. |
Office of Military Government, United States (OMGUS) Records
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Records of the Cultural Affairs Branch Relating to Monuments, Museums, Libraries, Archives, and Fine Arts, OMGUS, 1946-1949 Record Group 260; Descriptive Pamphlet #M1921 (14 rolls). Description available in NARA's online catalog. Digital images available on Fold3. On the 14 rolls of this microfilm publication are reproduced records relating to monuments, museums, libraries, archives, and fine arts of the Cultural Affairs Branch, Education and Cultural Relations (ECR) Division, Office of Military Government, U.S. Zone (Germany) [OMGUS] during the period 1946-1949. These records pertain to the restitution of artworks, investigations of crimes involving art objects, conditions of archives and libraries in the American Zone and their holdings, problems encountered in reopening museums, libraries, and archives and the exchange of experts and exhibits. |
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Records of the External Assets Investigation Section of the Property Division, OMGUS, 1945-1950 Record Group 260; Descriptive Pamphlet #M1922 (135 rolls). Description available in NARA's online catalog. Digital images available on Fold3. On the 88 rolls of this microfilm publication are reproduced investigation reports, interrogations of business and industrial leaders, and related records of the External Assets Investigation Section of the Property Control and External Assets Branch of the Property Division of the Office of Military Government, U.S. Zone (Germany) [OMGUS], during the period 1945-1949. These records are part of Records of U.S. Occupation Headquarters, World War II, Record Group (RG) 260. |
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OMGUS Finance Division Records Regarding Investigations and Interrogations, 1945-1949 Record Group 260; Descriptive Pamphlet #M1923 (8 rolls). Description available in NARA's online catalog. Digital images available on Fold3. On the 8 rolls of this microfilm publication are reproduced bank investigation reports, interrogations of Nazi financiers, and related records of the Office of the Finance Division and Finance Advisor during the period 1945-1947. |
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Records Regarding Intelligence and Financial Investigations of the Financial Intelligence Group, OMGUS, 1945-1949 Record Group 260; Descriptive Pamphlet #M1925 (11 rolls). Description available in NARA's online catalog. Digital images available on Fold3. On the 9 rolls of this microfilm publication are reproduced records relating to intelligence and financial investigations of the Financial Intelligence Group, Office of the Finance Adviser (FINAD or OFA), Office of Military Government, U.S. Zone [OMGUS], during the period 1945-1949. |
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Records of the Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives Section (MFAA) of the Reparations and Restitution Branch, OMGUS, 1945-1951 Record Group 260; Descriptive Pamphlet #M1949 (43 rolls). Description available in NARA's online catalog. Digital images available on Fold3. On the 43 rolls of this microfilm publication are reproduced the records of the Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives (MFAA) Sections of the Reparations and Restitution Branch, Office of Military Government, U.S. Zone, (Germany) [OMGUS]. These records consist of intelligence reports, interrogation reports, captured documents, and general information regarding German art looting. For the Cultural Property Claim Applications found on rolls 8-26 of this publication, a Name Index and a Country Index are also available. |
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Records of the Foreign Exchange Depository Group of the Office of the Finance Adviser, OMGUS, 1944-1950 Record Group 260; Descriptive Pamphlet #DN1924 (191 rolls). Description available in NARA's online catalog. Digital images available on Fold3. On the 149 disks of this digital publication are reproduced records relating to the administration and operation of the Foreign Exchange Depository Group, Office of the Finance Advisor, Office of Military Government for Germany (U.S.) [OMGUS], during the period 1944-1950. These records are contained within Records of the United States Occupation Headquarters, World War II, Record Group (RG) 260. |
Office of Strategic Services (OSS) Records
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OSS Art Looting Investigation Unit Reports, 1945-46 Record Groups 38 and 239; Descriptive Pamphlet #M1782 (1 roll). Description available in NARA's online catalog. Digital images available on Fold3. On the single roll of this microfilm publication are reproduced the Detailed Interrogation Reports, Consolidated Interrogation Reports, and the Final Report of the Office of Strategic Service's (OSS) Art Looting Investigation Unit (ALIU). The ALIU distributed copies of these documents to numerous Government agencies. In order to produce the highest quality microfilm image, the best physical copy of each report was selected for inclusion in M1782. Also available for these reports is a Name Index. |
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OSS Washington Secret Intelligence/Special Funds Records, 1942-1946 Record Group 226; Descriptive Pamphlet #M1934 (35 rolls). Description available in NARA's online catalog. Digitial images available on Fold3. On the 24 rolls of this microfilm publication are reproduced records that were originally in the custody of the Washington Office, Secret Intelligence Branch and the Washington Office, Special Funds Division of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), and their predecessor units, during the period 1942-1946. The records were created and collected by these units while they were engaged in Project Safehaven, the code name of a project of the Foreign Economic Administration, in cooperation with the State Department and the military services, to block the flow of German capital across neutral boundaries and to identify and observe all German overseas investments. These materials are part of the Records of the Office of Strategic Services, Record Group (RG) 226. A subject list of the numbered documents is available. |
Roberts Commission Records
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Records of the American Commission for the Protection and Salvage of Artistic and Historical Monuments in War Areas (The Roberts Commission), 1943-1946 Record Group 239; Descriptive Pamphlet #M1944 (187 rolls). Description available in NARA's online catalog. Digital images available on Fold3. On the 187 rolls of this microfilm publication are reproduced the Records of the American Commission for the Protection and Salvage of Artistic and Historic Monuments in War Areas (The Roberts Commission). This publication contains all the series in Record Group 239 except for two series in original microfilm format: "Card File of Japanese Works, Collections, Sites, and Installations Requiring Protection, 1946" (NARA Microfilm Publication #A3383), and "Microfilm Copies of Reports from the Mediterranean and European Theaters of Operations Received from the Allied Military Government, 1943-1946" (NARA Microfilm Publication #A3380). While most of this publication consists of textual records, a large number of maps, photographs, and aerial photographs are included. |
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Reports from the Mediterranean and European Theaters of Operations Received from the Allied Military Government, 1943-1946 Record Group 239; Descriptive Pamphlet #A3380 (3 rolls). Description available in NARA's online catalog. Digital images available on Fold3. On the 3 rolls of this microfilm publication are reproduced reports, lists, and card files that consist of selected pages of reports received from Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives (MFAA) officers in the European and Mediterranean Theaters of Operations; information on private art collections; and extracts of card files related to war damage, art looting, and auctions. These records are part of Records of the American Commission for the Protection and Salvage of Artistic and Historic Monuments in War Areas, Record Group (RG) 239. |
U.S. Allied Commission for Austria (USACA) Records
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Records of the Reparations and Restitutions Branch of the U.S. Allied Commission for Austria (USACA) Section, 1945-1950 Record Group 260; Descriptive Pamphlet #M1926 (156 rolls). Description available in NARA's online catalog. Digital images available on Fold3. On the 156 rolls of this microfilm publication are reproduced the individual claims processed by and general records of the Reparations and Restitutions Branch of the United States Element, Allied Commission for Austria (USACA) Section, 1945-1950. The claims represent assembled information that was used to determine if the claimants deserved restitution of property or that property's value. |
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Records of the Monuments and Fine Arts Branch of the U.S. Allied Commission for Austria (USACA) Section, 1945-1950 Record Group 260; Descriptive Pamphlet #M1927 (14 rolls). Description available in NARA's online catalog. Digital images available on Fold3. On the 14 rolls of this microfilm publication are reproduced the individual claims processed by and general records of the Monuments and Fine Arts Branch of the United States Element, Allied Commission for Austria (USACA) Section, 1945-1950. |
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Records of the German External Assets Branch of the U.S. Allied Commission for Austria (USACA) Section, 1945-1950 Record Group 260; Descriptive Pamphlet #M1928 (132 rolls). Description available in NARA's online catalog. Digital images available on Fold3. On the 132 rolls of this microfilm publication are reproduced reports on businesses with German affiliations and information on the organization and operations of the German External Assets Branch of the United States Element, Allied Commission for Austria (USACA) Section, 1945-1950. |
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Records of the Property Control Branch of the U.S. Allied Commission for Austria (USACA) Section, 1945-1951 Record Group 260; Descriptive Pamphlet #DN1929 (600 rolls). Description available in NARA's online catalog. Digital images available on Fold3. On the 413 disks of this digital publication are reproduced cases and reports, claims processed by, and general records of the Property Control Branch of the United States Element, Allied Commission for Austria (USACA) Section, 1945-1950. These records are part of Records of United States Occupation Headquarters, World War II, Record Group (RG) 260. |
Safehaven Records
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Safehaven Reports of the War Crimes Branch, 1944-1945 Record Group 153; Descriptive Pamphlet #M1933 (9 rolls). Description available in NARA's online catalog. Digital images available on Fold3. On the nine rolls of this microfilm publication are reproduced the Safehaven reports received by the War Crimes Branch during the period 1944-1945. These materials are part of the records of the War Crimes Branch in Records of the Office of the Judge Advocate General (Army), Record Group (RG) 153. |
Records of the Presidential Advisory Commission on Holocaust Assets in the United States
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Records of the Presidential Advisory Commission on Holocaust Assets in the United States Description and digital images available through the William J. Clinton Library. The Presidential Advisory Commission on Holocaust Assets in the United States, formed in 1998, was charged with investigating what happened to the assets of victims of the Holocaust that ended up in the possession of the United States Federal government. The final report of the Commission, "Plunder and Restitution: Findings and Recommendations of the Presidential Advisory Commission on Holocaust Assets in the United States and Staff Report" was submitted to President Clinton in December 2000. The records relate to Holocaust assets created between the mid 1930's and early 1950's by a variety of U. S. Government agencies and foreign sources. Digitized by the William J. Clinton Presidential Library, the collection consists of 19 series and is described in greater detail here. |
For more information about the records of the National Archives and Records Administration, please visit the National Archives' website.
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