Overview
- Brief Narrative
- Nazi War banner found by Ardie Wickers, a soldier in the 354th Infantry Regiment, 89th Infantry Division, US Third Army. Wickers, an intelligence and reconnaissance scout, discovered the banner after entering Ohrdruf concentration camp in Germany on April 4, 1945.
- Date
-
found:
1945 April 04
manufacture: after 1938 February
- Geography
-
found:
Ohrdruf (Concentration camp);
Ohrdruf (Germany)
- Credit Line
- United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Chris Wickers
- Markings
- Back, left, on channel, stamped, black ink : KR.FL. 150 x 250 [Reichskriegsflgge 150 x 250 National War Flag]
Back, lower left, on channel, stamped, black ink : Witte K.G. / München
Physical Details
- Classification
-
Identifying Artifacts
- Category
-
Flags
- Object Type
-
Banners (lcsh)
- Genre/Form
- Flags.
- Physical Description
- Large, rectangular, machine woven wool bunting flag with a red field bearing a black-and-white, second pattern design. Just left of center is a canted, black swastika in a white circle with a black border, centered on a black Nordic Cross. The cross arms have a border of three alternating stripes, white-black-white, on each side that continue to form the border around the circle. A black Iron Cross is in the canton or top left quadrant. The cross and swastika are bordered by narrow black and white bands. The corners of the hoist are reinforced on the back with red cloth. A thick, white, cloth channel with an attached rope halyard is sewn along the hoist end. The halyard has a looped top end and a loose bottom length and is secured by cross stitching at both ends. The design is visible on both sides. On the back of the channel there is a black ink stamp containing German manufacturing information and a Reichsadler with an M stamped below. The cloth is stained and soiled overall.
- Dimensions
- overall: Height: 55.250 inches (140.335 cm) | Width: 98.250 inches (249.555 cm)
- Materials
- overall : wool, cotton, thread, ink, bast
Rights & Restrictions
- Conditions on Access
- No restrictions on access
Keywords & Subjects
- Topical Term
- Soldiers--United States--Biography.
Administrative Notes
- Legal Status
- Permanent Collection
- Provenance
- The banner was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2015 by Chris Wickers, the son of Ardie Wickers.
- Record last modified:
- 2022-10-17 08:24:09
- This page:
- https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn107279
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Also in Ardie Wickers collection
The collection consists of a Nazi banner and flag pole finial relating to the experiences of Ardie Wickers, a US soldier, during the liberation of Ohrdruf concentration camp in Germany on April 4, 1945.
Date: 1945 April 04
Flag pole finial with a swastika acquired by an American soldier at Ohrdruf
Object
Ornamental finial bearing swastika found by Ardie Wickers , a soldier in the 354th Infantry Regiment, 89th Infantry Division, US Third Army. Wickers, an intelligence and reconnaissance scout, discovered the finial, as well as a Nazi banner, after entering Ohrdruf concentration camp in Germany on April 4, 1945.
