Description:

THIRD REICH "PEOPLE'S RADIO"
An evocative Third Reich artifact, a black bakelite radio set, 12 3/3" x 10 3/4" x 7 1/4", the model VE 301 Dyn "Volksempfaenger" ("People's Receiver"), designed by engineer Otto Griesing at the request of propaganda minister Josef Goebbels and retailed to the German people at an affordable rate expressly for the purpose of receiving state-sponsored propaganda broadcasts. The radio was of a very rudimentary and simple design for the era, relying on three vacuum tubes and capable of receiving only long and medium-wave bands, as foreign radio broadcasters, such as the BBC relied on shortwave broadcasts to reach distant listeners. The face of the radio bears a dial graduated for long and medium-wave bands, also bearing the names of various German and Austrian cities, allowing the listener to easily tune to those state-sponsored broadcasts. Switches for each band and three knobs for volume and tuning are positioned below, and a molded national eagle and swastika appears on either side of the dial. The larger portion of the face is dominated by the cloth speaker screen, now slightly loose from the radio body. The fiberboard rear panel bears the radio's model number and identifies the manufacturer as "Radio A.G. D.S. Loewe" of Berlin. It also features a diagram of the radio's tube configuration and several warning messages, as well as an eagle-and-swastika insignia over "Reichs Rundfunk", the German state broadcasting company. A metal plaque bearing the serial number "116791" is affixed to the metal chassis within the radio, and all three original tubes are present and intact. The rubber-clad power cable is present and intact. An additional eagle and swastika is visible at the upper right corner of the interior of the cabinet. Short-wave broadcasts could still be received by this radio under the right atmospheric conditions and with the help oif an external antenna; many Germans took advantage of this capability despite the constant threat of severe punishment. Shows some creasing to the rear panel, with one "station" is scraped off of the dial for unknown reasons, still in very good, likely functional condition.

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July 31, 2018 10:00 AM EDT
Elkton, 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 + $10,000