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July 14, 2020 - Droog Magazine periodical for investigative journalism

The Hitler Forgery Industry

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1946  | Auctions |  Certificates of Authenticity


The strange business of selling fakes, forgeries and other concoctions attributed to Adolf Hitler (1889-1945) and other Nazi criminals.

Introduction

In the direct post war period there was very little interest in objects or documents originating from or belonging to high ranking Nazi's.



Handwritten texts by Napoleon and some by high ranking Nazis on UK auction.

Februarry 1946 - At a London based auction handwritten texts from Napoleon as well as from Hitler, Hess, Kesselring, Keitel, Ciano and other high ranking Nazis are sold.

A packets of letters from Napoleon is sold for
the equivalent of 4,000 guilders. The material from the Nazis is sold for 550 guilders in total.

It is unknown if this material was authentic or forged.

[4,000 NL guilders was in 1946 the equivalent of circa 365 UK pound. With inflation correction this would be ca. 20,295 euro anno 2018]

Auctioning of granite Hitler slabs in Sweden

On November 28, 1946, granite slabs, ordered by Nazi Germany to build a victory monument for Hitler, were auctioned in Stockholm, as these stones had never left Sweden.

Germany had paid 7 million Swedish kronen (circa 500,000 UK pounds) for the granite. The profit of the auction was considered to be German activa in Sweden.





Sources

London auction

Van terzijde. Leeuwarder Koerier, Leeuwarden, 28-02-1946.
https://resolver.kb.nl/resolve?urn=ddd:010609658:mpeg21:a0046

Swedish auction

Luchtkasteel geveild. Trouw, Amsterdam, 29-11-1946.
https://resolver.kb.nl/resolve?urn=ABCDDD:010936861:mpeg21:a0087

Exchanges rates 1946

1 UK pound = 10.69 NL guilder
Source: Financieel beleid der regeering. Provinciale Drentsche en Asser Courant, Assen, 23-01-1946.
https://resolver.kb.nl/resolve?urn=MMDA03:000115936:mpeg21:a0007
Value of the Guilder/Euro. International Institute of Social History, Amsterdam.
http://www.iisg.nl/hpw/calculate.php
 

 


© Compilation Bart FM Droog, 2020.