Abstract
The essay by Beatrix Bastl and Paul Köpf examines basic assumptions, methods and goals of the provenance research project at the university library of the Academy of fine Arts Vienna. Starting with the management of Otto Reich, by 1933 already an illegal member of the NSDAP, the article deals with the changes in staff setting in March 1938 and discusses the library's possibilities to gain NS-looted art. Being the first work report, the authors come to the preliminary conclusion that the collection of the academy library might include looted art. The research team faces the challenge that the inventory registers do not include relevant information on the acquisitions from 1933 to 1955. This lack of data might be a hint on ill-gotten art on the one hand; on the other hand, the so-called "book autopsy", i.e. the item by item inspection of a library's holdings, therefore becomes the single most important research tool. The results will be double-checked with national and international databases and collected in a data sheet. The goal is to identify looted items and to restitute them to their lawful owners.