Desecerated German graves Pitonmik airfield Stalingrad

[Marcel Banziger]

Quite a difficult thing to discuss and opinions go from far left to far right. It is in my opinion very disrespectful to rob graves like shown on the first pic for a small profit. I'd say leave the dead alone. However, it's the collector's demands for collectables that makes grave robbers to continue what they do. Deliver the collectors their so much wanted original items. I am convinced that every single one here on the forum has at least one item taken off a dead body. That's just how it is when collecting war artifacts.

[Jean-Loup]

The issue here is not taking items from bodies, the issue is digging bodies up and throwing the bones about without even having the respect to rebury them, let alone in a cemetery.

If you take a helmet or belt buckle from a body, that doesnt have any consequences. If you take an ID tag from a body, you are making it unidentifiable for good, thus hurting a family somewhere, and also destroying potentially interesting historical/archeological information.

The fact that grave robbing has gone on forever or that 'there is a demand from collectors' are certainly not justifications for having no respect whatsoever for the dead or for history.

I have a large number of items removed from dead bodies, but none of those bodies are spread about in the fields like trash, and every effort was made to identify them and find family members (and yes, most of these bodies still do have concerned family members after 70 years: http://dev.wehrmacht-awards.com/foru...leneuve-loubet ).

Buying ground dug items is one thing, but agreeing to the kind of behaviour shown in the photo is quite another, and if you do agree with such behavious, you should take a serious look at yourself in the mirror, and wonder if you have any respect for mankind and history.

I personaly cant feel much negative sentiment against some peasent in russia digging up bodies with no respect to pilfer them, but people who have access to a bit of money and education should know better.

[dagoromagna]

the issue here is not taking items from bodies, the issue is digging bodies up and throwing the bones about without even having the respect to rebury them, let alone in a cemetery.

If you take a helmet or belt buckle form a body, that doesnt have any consequence. If you take an id tag from a body, you are making it unidentifiable for good, thus hurting a family somewhere, and also destroying potentially interesting historical/archeological information.

The fact that grave robbing has gone on forever or that 'there is a demand from collectors' are certainly not justifications for having no respect whatsoever for the dead or for history.

I have a large number of items removed from dead bodies, but none of those bodies are spread about in the fields like trash, and every effort was made to identify them and find family members (and yes, most of these bodies still do have concerned family members after 70 years: http://dev.wehrmacht-awards.com/foru...leneuve-loubet ).

Buying ground dug items is one thing, but agreeing to the kind of behaviour shown in the photo is quite another, and if you do agree with such behavious, you should take a serious look at yourself in the mirror, and wonder if you have any respect for mankind and history.

amen.

[Hans Zeug]

Dead invaders.

It doesnt really matter what happens to the rusty helmets and badges found with these bodies, but when you are a civilized human being, you treat the dead with a minimum of respect, rebury the them, and do what is possible to identify them and inform the authorities of the ID.

Yes, grave robbing has existed for ever, so has murder and rape, it doesnt mean any of those are great things that should be celebrated and encouraged.

What is the difference beween buying a helmet taken off a dead soldier in 1944, and buying a graved robbed helmet? Very simple, when a helmet was taken off a dead guy in 1944, that didnt simultaneously rob him of his identity and the right to have a half decent grave.

JL

Perhaps if they had been a bit more "civilized" they would not have been there in the first place!

[Nordfront]

Perhaps if they had been a bit more "civilized" they would not have been there in the first place!

Maybe some of them didn't have a choice? Maybe they didn't want to be there? Like some of your own "Paisanos" who had to build the Empire. You just don't build those Empires etc. with civilized manners.

[Jean-Loup]

"Perhaps if they had been a bit more "civilized" they would not have been there in the first place! "

Let's get this straight? Is your opinion that it is acceptable to dig up bodies, spread their bones and the surface of the ground, and sell any items fround on them to collectors, with no attention paid to either the identification of the dead, nor potential historical information?

If that is your opinion, say so clearly so that we can get a better measure of your personality.

This has nothing to do with the level of civilisation of the people whose grave is being robbed. If tomorrow Hitler's grave is located, regardless of who he was, it would have significant importance to exhume his grave carefully and publish the results. It would answere numerous historical questions, and provide fascinating information for anybody interested in the history of WWII.