Deane Keller was one of the unsung heroes of World War II.

A native of New Haven, Conn., Keller spent most of his professional career as an art teacher at Yale University. But from 1943-46 he was one of the U.S. Army’s “monuments men” attached to the Fifth Army in Italy. His duty as a “fine arts officer” was to locate and safeguard art treasures and to coordinate emergency restoration of damaged monuments, churches and museums.

Keller was often the first U.S. Army officer on the scene at places like Campo Santo in Pisa, Italy, after its priceless frescoes were badly damaged by American artillery. He also supervised the return of famed artworks taken from the Uffizi Gallery in Florence by German forces. The estimated value of the collection at that time was an astounding $500 million.

For his efforts during the war, Keller was awarded the U.S. Legion of Merit, the Member of the British Empire medal and the Order of St. John the Lateran from the Vatican.

Details of Keller’s remarkable military career are one of the fascinating stories depicted in the documentary film, “The Rape of Europa,” which was recently released on DVD. The film tells the story of the theft, destruction and, in some cases, the miraculous survival of Europe’s art treasures during World War II.

The Toronto Star called the film “the most stunning documentary of the year.” Other critics described it as “hauntingly unforgettable” and a “provocative masterpiece.” For history buffs and art aficionados, the DVD’s release should bring welcome relief from the clutter of big budget Hollywood films currently on the market.

The film was written, produced and directed by Richard Berge, Bonni Cohen and Nicole Newnham. Co-producer Robert M. Edsel is author of the film’s companion book, Rescuing Da Vinci, The Rape of Europa, based on Lynn H. Nicholas's book. Actress Joan Allen narrates the chronicle about the battle for the survival of centuries of Western culture.

“The Rape of Europa” takes its audience on a journey through seven countries and the violent fanaticism of Nazi Germany’s Third Reich. The greed and warfare launched across the continent by Adolf Hitler, himself a failed artist, threatened to wipe out Europe’s artistic heritage. For 12 years the Nazis looted and destroyed art on an unprecedented scale. By the end of the war, Hitler’s private art collection totaled more than 6,000 pieces. Fellow Nazi Hermann Goering’s private collection exceeded 2,000 pieces.

Germany’s invasion of the Slavic countries of Poland and Russia was intended to wipe off the historical map the culture and history of the two countries. It’s amazing that anything survived the Nazi onslaught.

In addition to Keller, the heroes in this saga proved to be young art professionals and “ordinary” citizens such as truck drivers and department store clerks. Their extraordinary efforts helped to safeguard, rescue and return millions of lost, hidden and stolen treasures.

One French curator at the Louvre Museum in Paris was able to catalog nearly every piece of art that the Germans stole from French galleries and private citizens during their occupation of the country. It proved to be an invaluable document after the war that enabled many of the pieces to be returned to their rightful owners.

Curators at Russia’s State Hermitage Museum in Leningrad were able to transfer thousands of items to remote locations in Siberia as the Germans began their invasion. Hundreds of other priceless objects were stored in the museum’s basement vaults as the Germans laid siege to the city. More than 500,000 Russians lost their lives during this period.

Luckily cities like Rome and Paris were spared the total devastation that other European cities endured during the war. Warsaw, Berlin and Munich, for example, were almost completely destroyed.

“The Rape of Europa” begins and ends with the story of artist Gustav Klimt’s famed “Gold Portrait,” which was stolen from Viennese Jews in 1938 and is now the most expensive painting ever sold. More than 60 years later, the legacy of this tragic history continues to play out as families of looted collectors recover major works of art, conservators repair battle damage and nations fight over the fate of ill-gotten spoils of war.

According to U.S. estimates, the Nazis stole one-fifth of all the known artworks in Europe. While the Allies returned most of the displaced art in the decade following the war, much of the plunder is still missing. Unique masterpieces were destroyed and lost to posterity forever. The historic Benedictine Abbey at Monte Casino in Italy, for example, was leveled by Allied bombers during the war. Other works of art — the last, forgotten victims of the war — survived but remain unidentified, traceable only with costly and difficult investigation.

The film was cited by the U.S. Bishops’ Office for Film and Broadcasting as one of the Top 10 Films of 2007. The Catholic News Service review called it “a fascinating story as compelling as any dramatic film, and poignantly demonstrates the lengths to which ordinary people were willing to go to save these masterpieces, regardless of the danger to their physical well-being.”

Watch out for: some disturbing war imagery.

Rated: USCCB: A-II; MPAA: not rated.

On the Web

menemshafilms.com

therapeofeuropa.com