Todi paid homage to Rodolfo Siviero, the 007 of Italian art

On the occasion of the fortieth anniversary of the death of Rodolfo Siviero, the most famous secret agent of art, the Municipality of Todi paid homage to this great personality with a day of studies entitled “Rodolfo Siviero, the 007 of Art. The recovery of the Italian heritage between Florence, Rome and Todi”, with the aim of enhancing its commitment to returning to Italy the heritage stolen by the Nazis during the Second World War and its link with the Umbrian town.

After the institutional greetings from the municipal administration, the University of Perugia and the Cultural Heritage Directorate of the Tuscany Region, Riccardo Luciani from the University of Perugia, Francesca Bottari, author of the monograph on Siviero, Cristina Galassi, professor of the University of Perugia and director of the School of Specialization in Historic-Artistic Heritage, Attilio Tori, former curator of the Casa Rodolfo Siviero Museum in Florence and Carlo Zoccoli of the Zoccoli restoration studio in Todi. Stefano Petrocchi, of the Regional Museums Directorate of Lazio, coordinated the various contributions.

Starting from a brief excursus on Siviero’s life and exploits, the speakers outlined as clear a picture as possible of the complex biographical story of the art historian who, as an informant for the SIM, the information service of the fascist secret police, decided to fight , during the war years, for the protection of the artistic heritage of our country from the aims of the most formidable raiding system developed by the Nazis, the Kunstshutz.

Alongside Rodolfo Siviero, other important personalities of the time also worked during the conflict: from Giulio Carlo Argan to Palma Bucarelli, from Emilio Lavagnino to Pasquale Rotondi, many were those who distinguished themselves in important actions in a race against time to save the heritage artistic from certain alienation.

After the war, Siviero, head of the Italian delegation for the restitution of works of art, was appointed plenipotentiary minister. Negotiations for restitution took place in some German and Italian cities, including Perugia. His stay in Umbria allowed the Minister to travel in the region and come into contact with an important family of restorers in Todi, with whom he began frequent contact.

Alongside the conference, a small photographic and documentary exhibition entitled Rodolfo Siviero was also proposed: photographs on the most famous secret agent in art with material mostly kindly loaned by the Museo Casa Rodolfo Siviero in Florence. The exhibition, inaugurated at the end of the conference, is set up in the premises of the civic art gallery and aims to disseminate further information on the figure of Rodolfo Siviero, using photographs that chronologically reconstruct his life and the deeds he accomplished. Within the exhibition itinerary, in addition to twenty photographs taken from originals, there is also a screen on which a video regarding Siviero’s life and his exploits is played, kindly granted by the professor and director Massimo Becattini.The initiative was promoted with the patronage of the Municipality of Todi, the University of Perugia, the School of Specialization in Historical and Artistic Heritage, the Tuscany Region and Pro Todi.