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Botschaft Rothschild--The largest collections stolen in France mostly by specialized elements of the German occupation forces belonged to the Rothschild family. The German Embassy in Paris guided by Ambassador Otto Abetz, oversaw the plunder of property belonging to various members of the Rothschild family, including Maurice, Alexandrine, James-Armand and Edmond. These early removals of Rothschild property occurred in the summer and fall of 1940 and were greatly aided by the Devisenschutzkommando (DSK), a securities and financial fraud police organization that had jurisdiction over bank vaults and safe deposit boxes where thousands of art objects were stored for safekeeping. |