it is difficult to place
1. Does the first sentence of the following context mean "it is difficult to consider Picasso's another painting about war titled "war" an immediate post-war Western European response"?

2. Does the last sentence of the context imply "there are not many artworks about Korean war, and Picasso's paintings are among the few artworks that are about this war"?

Context:
In terms of immediate post-war Western European responses, it is difficult to place Pablo Picasso’s other massive painting on the subject of conflict, War (1952). Its symbolic elements include a horned devil, an armoured warrior, a battle scene, and a chariot set against a threatening landscape and sky. It has been argued that the composition is connected to the Korean War since it followed on a painting specifically responding to this event entitled Massacre in Korea (1951). If so, Picasso’s Korean compositions are rare examples of any art from this conflict.

Question

it is difficult to place
1. Does the first sentence of the following context mean "it is difficult to consider Picasso's another painting about war titled "war" an immediate post-war Western European response"?

2. Does the last sentence of the context imply "there are not many artworks about Korean war, and Picasso's paintings are among the few artworks that are about this war"?

Context:
In terms of immediate post-war Western European responses, it is difficult to place Pablo Picasso’s other massive painting on the subject of conflict, War (1952). Its symbolic elements include a horned devil, an armoured warrior, a battle scene, and a chariot set against a threatening landscape and sky. It has been argued that the composition is connected to the Korean War since it followed on a painting specifically responding to this event entitled Massacre in Korea (1951). If so, Picasso’s Korean compositions are rare examples of any art from this conflict.

Answer

1. Not exactly. "Difficult to place" means that it is difficult to make connections to other similar things. For example, a painting is often understood in connection to other, similar paintings from the same time period. "it is difficult to place Pablo Picasso’s other massive painting on the subject of conflict, War" means that there are not obvious visual connections to other works from the same period, so it may be difficult to "read" or "understand" this painting. In this case, it is difficult to know if the painting is a response to the Korean War or not.

You can use "hard to place" or "difficult to place", they have the same meaning.

"Hard to place" also has another, different meaning; seeing someone for the second time, it is difficult to remember the first place you saw them.

"I definitely know that guy, but it's hard to place him" (I recognize that guy, but I can't remember where I met him before).

2. Yes, exactly.

Answer

Sentence 1: yes difficult because the painting contains a "horned devil" and an "armoured warrior" (age of armour unknown you have not shown the painting) 
sentence 2: Yes it does mean that.

So the painting contains medieval elements? or other elements not usually associated with Korea or the Korean war. But the painting was painted immediately after another Picasso in 1951 about the Korean war.

I have found the second painting mentioned 
here --> https://espionart.com/2013/07/29/picasso-paints-the-korean-war/

but the first painting "war" I have not seen

Art is subjective and I have not seen both paintings side by side. I may change my answer a little should I do so.