Lot 1034

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Description:

ADOLF HITLER PERSONALLY-OWNED FUHRER STANDARD
A particularly rare and evocative item, a 'Fuhrer Standarte', or Hitler's personal flag, recovered from his Munich apartment by an American soldier, possibly Jewish, and apparently on the very day Hitler committed suicide. The 7 1/8 in. square flag is (ironically) identical to those used on sashes offered by Hitler at funerals of the most important German military officers and civilians. It is carefully constructed of a white disc applied to a red field, a static black swastika at the center with silver wire attached as trim about the edges. The swastika is in turn surrounded by a gold bullion wreath of oak leaves. Four gold bullion national eagles with swastikas have been embroidered at the corners, and the entirety is trimmed in black and white ribbon. It appears to be unused, and we speculate it was kept on hand for sentimental reasons, or perhaps for emergency use. This piece has a well-known provenance. On or about April 30, 1945, Lt. Philip Ben Lieber of the 692nd Tank Destroyer Battalion was one of the first soldiers to enter the private Munich apartment of Adolf Hitler at Prinzregentenplatz 16. He seized the best 'souvenirs' he could find, including Hitler's visor cap and Nazi 'brown shirt', his 'Blood Order' and other medals, a portrait of Hitler's mother, a shaving mug (previously sold by us), and this small flag. Lieber's discovery was heralded in newspapers at the time and was examined by respected dealer Ben Swearingen III. In the meantime, in 1970, the balance of Lieber's collection was purchased by Mohawk Arms and then resold to dealers Wolfe-Hardin in 1994. At some point prior to 2014, Wolfe-Hardin also purchased other Lieber items in the collection of David Mathes. In 2014, Wolfe-Hardin sold the Lieber Collection in its entirety to dealer Craig Gottlieb, from whom our consignor purchased this relic. Included with the flag is an original affidavit citing the origin of the box, signed by prominent Third Reich militaria dealers Stephen Wolfe, his business partner Neil Hardin, and Craig Gottlieb.

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January 26, 2023 10:00 AM EST
Chesapeake City, MD, US

Alexander Historical Auctions LLC

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Bid Increments
From: To: Increments:
$0 $99 $10
$100 $499 $20
$500 $999 $50
$1,000 $1,999 $100
$2,000 $4,999 $250
$5,000 $9,999 $500
$10,000 $19,999 $1,000
$20,000 $49,999 $2,500
$50,000 $99,999 $5,000
$100,000 $999,999 $10,000
$1,000,000 $1,999,999 $50,000
$2,000,000 + $100,000