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Old March 3rd, 2023 #1
jagd messer
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Default Iron Cross / Eisernes Kreuz

Where the Iron Crosses Grow.


Just came across this evocative poem, you may have seen it before but those who have not here it is ..


A thousand wars have left their mark,
On soldiers waiting in the dark.
Who meet with fate, the final blow,
In the place where iron crosses grow.


Who count the dead with haunted eyes,
Afraid that we might see the lies.
The victory march. The years of woe,
The place where iron crosses grow.


Where steel meets flesh, and crushes bone,
Where young men scream, or weep alone.
Where some die quick, and some die slow,
In the place where iron crosses grow.


Where blood once warm, now stains the leaf,
Where the dead are blind to living’s grief.
Where many come, but few will know,
The place where iron crosses grow.


Said one, ‘I will show you how we fight.
We rage against the dying light;
We rise to meet the deadly foe;
In the place where iron crosses grow.


‘Then I will show you how we die,
While cursing God. With choking sigh.
One final breath, and then we sow,
The place where iron crosses grow.’


A mother waits. Laments again
The madness that will blacken men.
Who reason spurn, and life forego,
In the place where iron crosses grow.


A thousand wars. The millions dead.
The wasted dreams. The words unsaid.
Eternal Flame. The marbled rows.
In fields where iron cross still grows.



Where the Iron Crosses grow




Moscow Museum






Red / Russian Army Museum Moscow 03 III 2023.



Ivan captured a Stalingrad bound train. 'Collectors eat your heart out'.
 
Old May 24th, 2023 #2
jagd messer
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Default The Fuhrer's steeds: how the 'art world's Indiana Jones' tracked down the vast sculptures that once stood outside Adolf Hitler's office.

The Fuhrer's steeds: the vast sculptures that once stood outside Adolf Hitler's office.




In Saturday’s Mail, we told how in 2014 Arthur Brand — the Indiana Jones of the art world — was drawn into a shadowy world of neo-Nazis, ex-Stasi agents and crooked art dealers, after a friend with criminal contacts showed him a photo of the huge bronze horses that stood outside Hitler’s office window. They were being secretly offered for sale by a dealer called Steven. At first, Arthur was convinced they were fakes, as the Red Army had blasted to pieces all the statues outside the Reich Chancellery in 1945. Then he took a closer look at the last known film footage of Hitler. To Arthur’s astonishment, a plinth behind Hitler, which should have contained one of the horses, was empty — which meant they had been moved to safety. He discovered that the Red Army had moved them to an army barracks in East Germany. But where were they now?


The time was right to speak to Steven, the crooked dealer offering Hitler’s massive bronze horses for sale on the black market. But one misplaced word from me and they would vanish for ever. Obviously, I needed to pretend I was representing someone willing to buy valuable Nazi art. Someone extremely rich. As a dealer, I continued, Steven and I would both get a cut if he could find suitable pieces worth at least £1 million. At this stage, I didn’t dare mention the horses. Steven said he’d get back to me. For weeks, however, my phone was silent and I was convinced I had been rumbled. I was mistaken. When he contacted me again, it was to say he had something amazing, but it would have to be kept out of the public gaze. He followed up with an email and a colour photo of the horses. They were ‘two of the most important Nazi-era sculptures,’ he wrote, ‘ones that everybody assumes were destroyed.


German police have retrieved two long-lost bronze horses sculptures commissioned by the Nazi regime to adorn Adolf Hitler's chancellery after conducting raids on eight suspected members of an illegal ring of art dealers.

‘They’re been owned by a family called Flick, who actively supported the Nazis during the war. They want to offload them as soon as possible for political reasons. The price is 8 million euros [£7 million].’ I was ecstatic. Steven had swallowed the bait. One evening, I got a call from a journalist working for Der Spiegel, German’s leading news magazine. Konstantin von Hammerstein wanted to interview me about the illegal trade in cultural artefacts. ‘Rumour has it that some well-known works by celebrated Nazi sculptors, long thought destroyed, still exist,’ he said. ‘It’s something I’m already looking into.’

That sounded worrying — a newspaper report would ruin everything. But, providing Konstantin kept a lid on my investigation for now, he might prove to be an asset. After all, if anything went wrong in my scheme, I could be charged with trying to sell stolen sculptures on the black market. If a member of the Press was involved, however, we could file the whole operation under ‘investigative journalism’. I sent him the colour photo of Hitler’s horses and waited for his reaction. Konstantin rang back almost immediately. ‘Herr Brand, if this is genuine, we’re talking about the find of the century.’ He urged me to get in touch with his friend René Allonge, the German police’s chief commissioner responsible for art crimes. ‘I’m telling you this because the people mixed up in this aren’t exactly choirboys,’ Konstantin added. ‘The neo-Nazi movement is on the rise these days and its supporters don’t shrink from violence.’


The Watchman, a famous Nazi sculpture by Arno Breker — one of Hitler’s three favourite sculptors, along with Fritz Klimsch and Josef Thorak, who had created the horses.


In Berlin, I reported to a police station for my meeting with Chief Commissioner René Allonge. He was waiting for me, a big smile on his face. We walked down a long, bare corridor and entered his office, a gleaming white space with a few paintings and posters of stolen art on the walls. ‘See those boxes over there?’ Allonge pointed to about 30 boxes in the corner of his office. ‘That’s the archive [of the art section] of the Stasi. They didn’t just confiscate art collections; they also produced forgeries that were then sold as genuine items in the West.’

Allonge already knew the horses were being offered for sale on the black market. An ex-Stasi informant had told him the horses were owned by a grand master of the Knights Templar. The name Adler had also been mentioned. ‘The horses are almost certainly fakes, but offering forgeries for sale is still a serious crime,’ Allonge told me.‘Fakes?’ I got out my laptop and showed him the YouTube footage of Hitler before the bombing of the Reich Chancellery. Nine seconds into the film, I hit the pause button and showed him the empty place where one of the horses had stood. Then I told him about their long sojourn at a Russian barracks. Allonge was gazing at the screen wide-eyed. ‘You have a lead, I take it?’ I explained how I was trying to arrange a viewing and promised to keep him posted.

A few days later, I rang Steven to tell him that my ‘client’, Moss, was extremely interested in the horse bronzes. We agreed to meet up at Café Gruter in Amsterdam so I could supply proof that my buyer had the necessary funds. The café, when I arrived early with my colleague, Alex, was deserted. Alex installed himself at a separate table by a window. I was feeling very jumpy — chiefly because I had a miniature camera in my jacket pocket, with the lens hidden in my lapel. What if it went wrong? ‘Relax. They’re not going to bump you off,’ Alex said. ‘Not this minute, anyway.’ Steven arrived. He looked exactly as you’d expect an art broker to look, right down to a chic little scarf and expensive watch. ‘If we mess this up, we’ll either end up in jail or at the bottom of a lake,’ he said with a laugh.

I showed him my imaginary client’s passport and an auditor’s report — all fake. Steven said he’d never seen Hitler’s horses himself. ‘I don’t even know where they are. When I asked, I was warned not to ask unnecessary questions. We left it that Steven would try to get me a viewing, so I could assure my client the horses were genuine. Later, Alex and I looked at the footage from my secret camera. All there. Better still, Alex had recorded Steven making a phone call while I was in the loo. ‘Adler, I’ve arrived. See you later,’ he’d said. The same name that had been recalled by Allonge’s ex-Stasi informant.

Who had the horses? Was it the Flick family Steven had mentioned in his email? Or Adler, whom he had called while I was out of the room? It was time to put pressure on Steven. When we met again, in a restaurant, he told me the owners were getting cold feet about shipping the horses to the U.S. ‘There only needs to be one person in the chain who recognises those statues and we’re done for.’

I took a break and pretended to call my client. On my return, I told Steven: ‘Well, as luck would have it, last year Moss happened to buy a chateau somewhere in Provence. He’d already concluded that it would be safer to take the statues there. They wouldn’t have to go past Customs, so no one will be any the wiser.’ Steven beamed and loosened his scarf. ‘Perfect!’ He fumbled around in his briefcase and got out a file. ‘I’ve asked the owners for something extra to sweeten the deal. They offered me this.’ On the table, he placed a photo that showed a gigantic statue of a muscular, naked man holding a sword. It was The Watchman, a famous Nazi sculpture by Arno Breker — one of Hitler’s three favourite sculptors, along with Fritz Klimsch and Josef Thorak, who had created the horses.

I scrutinised the photo. How on earth could this statue have remained hidden all these years? Ten metres tall — that was as high as a three-storey building. ‘Please tell me this sculpture’s for sale, too,’ I said excitedly. ‘It is indeed. Before long, Moss will own both the Thorak horses and The Watchman. Eight million euros [£7 million] each.’ The mythical Moss was, of course, thrilled to hear about The Watchman and immediately agreed to the asking price. But I was all too aware that time was pressing. If anyone were to look seriously into Moss, my whole plan would fall apart.

Meanwhile, the journalist Konstantin had been doing some digging and discovered there was a collector of Nazi memorabilia called Mathias Flick. This had to be the Flick that Steven had referred to in his email as the current owner of the horses. Konstantin gave me an address for Flick in northern Germany. ‘But be careful. This guy is said to have a huge stash of arms.’ Arriving in a nearby town with my colleague, Alex, I asked a man for directions. ‘Oh, so you’re going to see Herr Flick. A very nice man,’ he said. It turned out that during a year of heavy snow, Flick had cleared it from the village with his World War II Wehrmacht tank, complete with gun barrel.

If René Allonge ever got permission to raid the place, he’d need to take an army with him. Flick’s large garden was surrounded by a very high wall — high enough to conceal the three-metre-high horses. So I climbed a tree next to it, but there was a cracking sound and I tumbled to the ground. On the other side of the wall, a dog started barking. Then we heard a man — Flick? — calling it. Alex hissed: ‘Bet you he’ll call the police and we’ll be arrested for trespassing.’ In the end, Alex saved the day. He managed to get access to satellite photos on his smartphone — so we zoomed into Flick’s garden. No sign of the horses. But we could see caterpillar tracks on the lawn from the tank — had it been used to move the giant steeds?


New Year's Reception of the Wehrmacht in the new Reich Chancellery, 1939. In the background is The Army sculpture.

And, oh my God, half hidden under the foliage, a few metres from where I was crouching, was a giant bronze statue. I quickly shimmied up the tree again. When I saw it, I thought I must be dreaming. It was perhaps the most famous statue of the Third Reich: The Army [Die Wehrmacht] by Arno Breker. Missing for 70 years, it had stood at the entrance to Hitler’s Reich Chancellery.

René Allonge was keen to launch a raid on Flick’s property, and was busy wading through all the red tape that involved. He would also have to warn Germany’s political leaders in advance — but was wary of doing so until the last minute. He was fully aware, I suspected, that former Nazis had for decades enjoyed protection from the highest political echelons. He wouldn’t want to risk anyone being tipped off. At the same time, Allonge had news: he had discovered that a man called Detlef Adler had been involved in a court case concerning some unnamed statues. Could this be the mysterious Adler whom Steven had called from the restaurant?


Adolf Hitler with Albert Speer (on left) and Arno Breker (on right) posing front of the Eiffel Tower in Paris (France) in June 1940.

Not long afterwards, Allonge rang again. ‘Arthur, the raids are on for the day after tomorrow! He’d be targeting Flick, Adler and another man he suspected. ‘The Ministers of Justice and Culture have been informed. Everyone’s blown away by the news that the Reich Chancellery statues still exist,’ said Allonge. ‘At 7am on Wednesday, around 200 police officers will assemble in three locations. Then we’ll set off. The army has lent us some explosives experts, as well as emergency service vehicles and equipment. As yet, the officers just think it’s a big drugs bust.’ Two hundred police officers and the army? I broke out in a sweat. If this went wrong, I would have to move to a desert island.

Allonge forbade me from attending any of the raids because I was considered a star witness. However, Konstantin would be going on the Adler raid, while my colleague Alex went on the Flick raid — and I could keep in touch with them by phone. On Wednesday, May 20, 2015, three raids were launched simultaneously. The endgame had begun. Konstantin soon emailed me a video clip of Adler’s house in Bad Dürkheim. ‘Someone’s opening the door,’ he said on the phone. ‘It’s Adler! They’re reading something aloud to him, probably the search warrant. More and more cars are pulling up. Adler’s just stepping aside and officers are going into his house. He looks as white as a sheet.’ Next it was Alex, perched in a tree overlooking Flick’s garden, calling to say police were on the lawn, gaping at the huge Nazi sculpture The Army.

By the time Alex rang me again, police had combed through Flick’s underground garage. They had found a V-1— a deadly flying bomb of the type Germany had rained on Britain. As for The Army, Flick was claiming he had bought it from a scrap metal dealer in East Germany. But still no horses. As the minutes ticked by, I started feeling despondent. Had the owner rumbled us and moved the statues to a secret location? ‘Arthur, most of the police are leaving Adler’s villa,’ Konstantin reported. ‘They’re coming out, getting into their cars and driving away.’

Just then, my other line rang. Steven! I took a deep breath. ‘I’m just ringing to check how things are,’ he said. He clearly knew nothing about the raids! I assured him that I was still on for the viewing of the horses next week. By 10.25, it was clear the raids had been a fiasco. Nothing had been found apart from The Army statue in Flick’s grounds and a gigantic arms cache. Konstantin called again. ‘Everyone’s gone, except Adler, a lawyer and a detective,’ he said. There was a long pause. ‘Wait,’ he whispered. ‘A lawyer is coming out with a detective. They’re getting into the lawyer’s car together. Something’s going on. I’ll follow them in my car. Call you in a sec.’

A few minutes later, Konstantin checked in again. ‘We’re in some kind of business park in Bad Dürkheim. They’re parking in front of a huge warehouse . . . They’re opening the gate. I’m going to try to get nearer.’ ‘Konstantin?’ I yelled. ‘Take a look inside. Now!’ I could hear his footsteps. ‘Are you still there?’ I asked. ‘Hello?’ ‘Yes, I’m still here. My God. I can see them! I can see Hitler’s horses. Oh my God!’

For a second, I nearly blacked out. ‘They’re standing side by side at the back of the warehouse. It’s them. No doubt about it!’ My phone instantly rang again. It was Steven, and he was swearing. ‘They’ve carried out raids right across Germany,’ he told me. ‘I just got a call. It seems they’ve found the horses, too.’ I wanted to whoop — but was just able to stop myself. Steven continued to swear, livid with rage. ‘Your client Moss won’t be able to buy the horses now,’ he said. ‘This is a total disaster. Twenty million down the drain!’ I couldn’t believe Steven still thought my client existed. Meanwhile, I had received a video clip from Konstantin. There they stood, as if looming up out of the mist: Hitler’s horses!

Steven was still talking. ‘Listen,’ he said, ‘perhaps something can still be salvaged. ‘We can forget about the horses and The Watchman. But I’ve got access to a unique carpet, ten by five metres. Made for the last Shah of Iran. It’s Iranian state property, so the deal would be hush-hush . . .’


The 2015 discovery of Hitler’s horses made headlines around the world. In addition, police had found two statues by Breker and two by Fritz Klimsch — plus, of course, The Army. They also tracked down The Watchman, which weighed 40 tons. Almost immediately, a debate raged on what to do with the sculptures: whether to exhibit them, tuck them away or even destroy them. In the end, the German government decided that they should be put on show. Before the sculptures can be exhibited, however, a court will have to decide on the rightful owner. As for Adler, Flick and Steven, they got off with nothing more than a nasty shock. It has been established by the German prosecutor that the charges fall outside the statute of limitations.

As for me, I feared this affair might rebound on me and affect my business. But Jewish families who come to me for help in tracing possessions stolen during World War II were delighted that I had cheated some Nazis out of millions of euros. And neo-Nazis were so thrilled at the sudden reappearance of the Führer’s favourite sculptures that they completely forgot to threaten me.


Adapted by Corinna Honan from the book Hitler’s Horses, by Arthur Brand



ARTHUR BRAND reveals how sculptures that stood outside ...


24 V 2023.
 
Old June 6th, 2023 #3
jagd messer
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Default Fake Iron Crosses: EK 2, EK 1, Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes.

'Fakes' FLOCH - who was he? Was there a main medal forger called Floch?



Q : Johannes Floch - who was he? Where did he operate from? How long was he operating? What did he make - even Knights Crosses? Even very reputable Auction houses have no qualms about selling on Floches. Years ago I returned a EK 1 / L 15. I still have an EK 1 / mm 49. It's a reminder that it's so easy to get fooled and caught by a ‘fake’.


A : Johannes Floch never faked anything himself. He distributed, like a lot of other people and dealer in the early years of the hobby, products made after the war in greater Vienna. There are no Floch Knight Crosses and neither are all L15 marked items fakes. Considering the quantities of war badges made in Germany, the multitude of fake Knights Crosses, Mr. Floch was a very small fish for a short time in the still ever growing pond of real fakers and shady dealers.


Floch

I was very lucky to go to school in Germany in the late 50s. Anyone who thinks the hay day of the bogus badge has not seen the traffic in badges during that time in Germany. The Iron Cross was king everyone sunning themselves on the banks of the Neckar in Heidelburg was approached by a student hawking his dads Iron Cross. It was that magic time when the troubles of the war faded and the mostly imaginary heroics were starting to form a more concrete facade.


I remember my first experience of a fellow student selling me his Dad's Iron Cross, I became suspicious when I saw him selling a few tourists "His dads Iron Cross" We became good friends until he passed in 1989 . Then I realized I was approached by at least a dozen students all with their "Dads iron cross" It was a real cottage industry anyone with the ability to make inexpensive costume jewellery was knocking out some sort of war bobble.


One family I visited had baskets of Knights Crosses and First Class Crosses all over the house. Then I found DAD he was in a shop in back of the house, You guess it there he was making a 'DADS IRON CROSS'. In the 1960s I sent for and sold thousands of these at the gun shows all through the southern states. They were a side line but it was nothing to sell 10 to 20 at a show. I would get $10.00 to $20. 00 each. I paid $3.00 each when I purchased 100 or more. Only once did someone question if it was made before the end of the war. I told him it was made a month ago but he told me it was before the end of the war as it would attract a magnet. I never argue with an expert!

Tom.


Today the fakers are making them so good that it is near impossible to distinguish from the W.W.II originals. As far as quality found in the production of the Iron Cross 2nd, it was just as good as a Knights Cross. It was regarded as a high honor from the time it was re-instituted by Hitler in 1939 until the end of the war. Regardless of the "Daddy's Iron Crosses", many old time firms sold off their existing stocks after the war and they have been reproduced then for as long. Experience and a trained eye can spot the fakes. The so called "Daddy's Iron Cross Factories" never existed except in the mind of an illusionist, a fake monger or a student of Hans Christian Anderson. As my favorite person of the past, Robert Ripley, always said, "BELIEVE IT OR BELIEVE IT NOT."


WCSTUMP

Iron Cross Fakes? - Axis History Forum. 06 VI 2023.

Why?
The prices:
EK 2 - £100,
EK 1 - £ 250,
Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes - £6,000 to £30,000.

How do you know:

EK1 DNA
If the number is not here it's a fake. Special fakes too are listed on the site.
 
Old June 6th, 2023 #4
Major Sharpe
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Old September 5th, 2023 #5
jagd messer
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Default Hitler's EK 1

Believe it or not, this is what I know about Hitler's EK 1.

I've picked up this story from a good collector friend of mine.


There is a large collection in Norway including Dr. Goebbels uniform, a Von Ribbentrop uniform, Göring's hunting cabinet, a globe given to Göring from Hitler, one of Hitler's visor's and a lot more.


The owner also has Adolf Hitler's first EK1, the actual one he got during WW1, not one of his many examples but the actual cross he got in WW1. The cross was given to Austria as a present from Hitler in a special frame. It was hanging in a town hall, museum, NSDAP party hall or something like that. The cross was taken as a trophy by the Russians if I remember correctly, and it's now in the collection in Norway. I have never seen the cross in person or on photo, but those I have the story from is fully trustable and honest collector's. I know that the Hitler visor was displayed in a military shop in Norway when it opened, they had to have police guards.


I don't know any more about the EK1, but i will contact one here that possibly do.

Jon-Olav, Norway.


________________________________________
M

My understanding is that Hitler's cross is supposed to be by unknown maker "KO" -- I have read this, but have no information otherwise. KO was "Konigliches Munzamt Orden of Berlin"



Did he decorate himself with RitterKreuz (Knights Cross), DKiG ?
No.
He only wore the blood order, EK and wound badge.
Look at Goering, Himmler and the others.
Field Marshals were decorated with RK mit diamonds cause they led soldiers from bunkers.
Hitler led all the Reich and did not get any RK or something. Think about that.
Hitler only wore the awards from WW1 and blood order .



I was watching a documentary on Hitlers rise to power tonight,(fatal attraction of Hitler part 1) and did see him in the early years wearing a slightly vaulted cross.He was speaking, and turned to the side, and I immediately knew I was incorrect.

I had never seen him wear but flat versions and always paid attention any time I saw him in films .... so I recant him only having a flat one, and agree he must have had flat and slightly vaulted both.

I agree with the other individual George ... that said they saw him wearing a vaulted version. He had to have had both types. But the one I saw was not a seriously vaulted example.

Evidently in WW1 at Flanders, Hitler was a messenger to the trenches, and won the Iron Cross there, and one more time after. So he was awarded it twice. I would imagine the 2nd class first, then the first class as his second.

Hitler stated that the winning of the Iron Cross was the happiest day of his life. Those who knew him heard him say so.

He earned it running through miles of trenches in mud up to his knees, while dodging artillery bombardment, and snipers. He was also blinded for several weeks by a gas attack, so possibly that's where he got the wound badge.

They claimed he led a group out of the gas, by divine intervention, as they held on to each others coat tails,trusting him in a long procession. It was supposedly in the hospital while blind that he had visions of the future to come, then all at once his sight returned miraculously.



I also know a big collector who in 68 argued with me that Hitlers party badge was #seven, and that he owned one. I felt he had to have number 1, but he would never agree with me, but then again a german 1 look like a 7 . He still holds to this opinion to this day.

I think Hitler... after joining the party with a higher number,... revamped the membership numbers later after taking control of the NSDAP...to make his number #1.


Adolf Hitler WW1.

"Hitler, much as many would like him to have been a coward and a shirker, was in fact a very good soldier. He remained calm under fire, showed respect to his superiors and never questioned his orders. Whilst casualties mounted and morale fell away, Hitler unstintingly carried on with his duty. He was rewarded with a promotion to Lance Corporal.

As the fighting continued the List regiment was used in a number of assaults just to the south of Ypres. Facing the French this time, the Germans received yet another mauling. Hitler earned an Iron Cross 2nd Class in an engagement near Croonaert Wood, Wytschaete. During the fighting and under heavy fire, Hitler, now appointed Meldeganger (a dispatch runner), stumbled across a seriously wounded officer left out in the open.

Along with a friend, he managed to pull the wounded man back to safety. Hitler received his award in December 1914. The action at the First Ypres decimated his regiment. Hitler wrote to his Munich landlord reporting that only 600 men were left out of approximately 3500. Colonel List was among the fatalities.

On 4 August 1918, with the Germans in the last throes of their grand offensive, Hitler received an Iron Cross 1st Class for, 'personal bravery and general merit.' He had single handily captured a group of Frenchmen huddled in a shell hole. Cunningly, Hitler had crawled to the lip of their impromptu shelter and then shouted out to the men that they were surrounded and had better surrender. Duped by his ruse, the Frenchmen came along without a fight.

The Iron Cross First Class gave Hitler the reward, recognition and the status that he deserved. The prize was rare for officers - but rarer still for non-commissioned ranks. It was official recognition of his bravery and honour"


The above quote is from www.firstworldwar.com

I would imagine that luck played a part in Hitler surviving 4+ years in the trenches as it no doubt would in any soldiers war time career.
 
Old September 5th, 2023 #6
Ole Massa
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I always thought Germany's old War Ensign was badass.
 
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