معرفی
Natalia Volkert, M.A., has been a research assistant, library officer and doctoral student at the Institute for East European History, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz since 2000. After obtaining a Russian diploma in history and archival science (1992) and a German Magistra Artium in Eastern European History, Medieval and Modern History, and Book Studies (2000), she has continuously combined research, teaching and curatorial responsibilities within the department.
Education
- 1987–1992: Russian State University for the Humanities (RGGU), Moscow – Diploma (Historian-Archivist)
- 1995–2000: Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz – Magistra Artium (M.A.)
Research Interests
Her work centres on Russia and the Soviet Union, with particular emphasis on the Stalinist era, cultural and religious history, economic and social transformations, German occupation policies in Eastern Europe (1941–1944), the Soviet Military Administration in Germany (SMAD), and the highly topical field of looted art and post-war restitution. These themes are approached through a combination of archival investigation, comparative policy analysis and cultural-historical contextualisation.
Publications Profile
Across monographs, journal articles, newspaper essays and book reviews (2000–2010), Volkert has systematically compared German and Soviet art-looting organisations, traced the fate of displaced cultural assets, and evaluated legal and ethical frameworks for restitution. The resulting body of work constitutes a crucial reference for scholars of wartime plunder and its long diplomatic aftermath.
Teaching & Translation Activity
She has designed and taught undergraduate courses ranging from Russian-language instruction for historians to specialised seminars on Stalinist cultural policy, Soviet rural history, the Russian Orthodox Church, SMAD administration, and the history of Russian Germans. Additionally, she has provided extensive Russian–German translation services for forced-labour documentation projects and international scholarly conferences.
Contact
E-mail: volkna00@uni-mainz.de
