Remarks on Receiving Statue Presented by President Gronchi on Behalf of the Italian People.
Mr. President:
I am particularly happy to act as the agent of the American people in receiving from your hands, on behalf of the Italian people, this replica of the art of antiquity, together with objects which you did not mention--the column and the beautiful capital on top of it that I see just outside the enclosure.
I assure you that all America will be extremely gratified by your action, not only because of their interest in ancient arts, and in modern art, but because of their understanding that this gift comes from the affection and the sense of relationship on the part of the Italian people to our own. As you know, we have many millions of citizens of Italian derivation. They will be, I think, extremely proud that you brought this gift to our people, and all the rest of us will take a tremendous satisfaction that it has been handed over in the hands of one who is a militant leader for democracy and human values in this world of today.
Thank you very much.
Note: The President spoke in the Rose Garden at 11:40 a. m., following the presentation by President Giovanni Gronchi of a reproduction of the 2500-year-old statue, the Discus Thrower.
President Gronchi's remarks ( through an interpreter) follow:
Mr. President:
It is an honor for me to present to you on behalf of the Italian people this statue which reproduces one of the most famous masterpieces of antiquity. This presentation has the purpose of expressing our gratitude to the people of the United States for the restitution of the works of art which were removed from Italy during World War II.
This restitution has been made possible by the understanding and the interest of the United States and has been an accomplishment of inestimable significance for the restoration of the Italian artistic wealth to its integrity.
Probably not everybody is aware of the importance of such restitutions. They included the treasures of the National Museum of Naples, which contained the celebrated paintings of the Farnese collection and the superb collection of ancient gold works of Herculaneum and Pompei; the treasures of the Uffizi and Pitti's Galleries, of the Churches and Convents of Tuscany together with numerous privately owned works which still are, in Italy, a living part of its history since they belong still often to descendants of families which commissioned them directly from the great Masters of the Renaissance.
These works were returned to Italy, thanks to the efforts of men motivated by a sense of right as well as by love of culture, who had been entrusted by the American government with the difficult and delicate task of such restitution and who, in the performance of their tasks, gave constant evidence both of their great love for Italy and of their deep respect for the most sacred principles of law and international life. Among those who exerted themselves the most in this task collaborating with the Chief of the Italian Restitution Mission, Rodolfo Siviero, I wish to mention General Lucius Clay, Mr. Robert Murphy and Mr. Richard Howard. The G e r m a n Democratic government itself cooperated in a cordial and friendly spirit in that noble task.
Mr. President, in renewing to you an expression of the deep appreciation of the Italian people, I wish to add that I am particularly pleased at having been able to hand over this statue to you, for the American people, during my present journey in the United States which promises to bring a new reaffirmation of the strong ties and the deep friendship which unite our two nations.
Dwight D. Eisenhower, Remarks on Receiving Statue Presented by President Gronchi on Behalf of the Italian People. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/232980
