Van Evek's Ghent Altarpiece, Michaelangelo's Madonna and Child, Van Dyke's Portrait of a Man With Neck Frill; what happened to these celebrated artworks and other treasures procured by the Third Reich during the thirties and forties?

The Spoils of World War II answers that question while telling a remarkable story of greed and avarice, with war-torn Europe as its backdrop. More than fifty years of research and documentation have finally revealed the extent to which the German forces stole from the lands they occupied, and portrays the American military forces as both liberators . . . and plunderers themselves.

The Reich armies requisitioned everything from art treasures to porcelain, pottery, furniture, and even Austria's prized Lippizaner stallions. But when the Reich finally fell, what happened to these priceless objects when the American troops located the vast storehouses of treasure, and what became of the possessions of the various mansions and castles that lay along the liberators' routes?

This is the story of many of the individuals who did the "liberating." Names are named . . . and the culprits range from lower-level staff officers to generals at the very top of the command chain. One captain, although ignorant of the German language, even took away leatherbound copies of first-edition works by Goethe and Schiller. In a macabre act of looting, one soldier brought home a burial urn containing the ashes of victims of Dachau.

Parts of this account of military thefts, investigations, courtroom hearings, and verdicts may not be attractive, but the overall experience of reliving those days is powerful and dramatic. The Spoils of World War II is a definitive record of events that have, for the most part, remained hidden for nearly half a century. The illustrations have been reproduced from photographs in the National Archives in Washington.