Adolf Galland kc in a auction?

[fizz]

I am really upset about this..was planing to buy it...

but then I also hear there are three Knights crosses with swords and diamonds belonging to him ...given by Hitler..then Goering..then Hitler again..
Who is Charles snyder....HOW CAN A DEALER DOCUMENT HIS OWN STUFF???
I am a new member..TELL ME WHAT i NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THIS RACKET PLEASE

Well glad I came here first.

[cobra-2001]

The problem here is really two-fold:
- the first question is whether this set is really Galland's, and
- secondly, are the Knights Cross and the Swords real?

Since the second question can be answered by everybody who has looked even remotely close to real pieces with a clear "No!", the first question is mute.

How an auction house, who even has a remote interest in their own reputation, can come up with such an offer is beyond me. By the time it took them to come up with the romantic description they could have found out what a stupid fake they have on hand. That was not that easy in the 1990s to find out, but there is no excuse nowadays. None!

What's left is this: a nice and elaborate description and a handy comission if sold. And a COA from Snyder! And maybe, only maybe, sombody who might be taken for a big chunk of money!
All in the eyes of the community!

That is why I posted it . It takes all kinds to sell a fake on a auction site with their clout and them to sell it and not do their home work first. I think the ribbon is even fake looks like it in the pictures. Some pour guy will buy it thinking he's got a piece of history.

[Darrell]

I am really upset about this..was planing to buy it...

but then I also hear there are three Knights crosses with swords and diamonds belonging to him ...given by Hitler..then Goering..then Hitler again..
Who is Charles snyder....HOW CAN A DEALER DOCUMENT HIS OWN STUFF???
I am a new member..TELL ME WHAT i NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THIS RACKET PLEASE

Well glad I came here first.

I suggest if you WERE going to buy it ... you spend 1/1000 less and buy some research material and study up on what you plan on buying. It will save you a lot of $$$ in the future. Especially since this one was so obviously fake.

[fizz]

One more time..Who is Charles Snyder?

...this is my research..to ask guys who follow this daily. I wanted this to go with my Galland related firearms...that came from by a letter of Galland himself..posted through the US Embassy in Bonn.

How a dealer authenticate his own merchandise...anyone can say they went to Gallands house to get some rare items....right?

[Jon. H]

One more time..Who is Charles Snyder?

...this is my research..to ask guys who follow this daily. I wanted this to go with my Galland related firearms...that came from by a letter of Galland himself..posted through the US Embassy in Bonn.

How a dealer authenticate his own merchandise...anyone can say they went to Gallands house to get some rare items....right?

Snyder is an oldtimer, he has been in this hobby longer than dirt. He is well known for selling poor forgeries with fancy stories. I believe he offers a fake Fedor von Bock baton at over half a million dollar for instance.

Snyder did visit Galland, and who knows if he actually got something from him. He is certainly milking the photos of him and Galland for all it's worth, same goes for Karl Dönitz, Albert Speer etc, which he also did visit. While his visits are well documented with photos, his items are not. They are mostly just crap with fancy stories, which he will stand behind, no matter what.

[Ludwig]

What a fraude!

[fizz]

So someone smart should write RIA to tell them this is a forgery..basically a story and photos not actually connected to ANYTHING....this must be stopped!

[Dietrich Maerz]

What makes you think they would pull the item if "someone smart" calls them up and informs them about the fake? They have nothing to loose and everything to gain. They will always fall back on Snyder's COA and Snyder will fall back on his usual line.
Only if it doesn't sell it is a loss for them. Knowing the hobby and the "buy first, ask later" of a lot of people who are afraid to "tip someone of" regarding this bargain, it will sell!
And the world will continue to turn.....

[fizz]

Ok I guess you are right..put there is too much silence about fakes IMHO

Now I hear there are three sets of IC with swords and diamonds belonging to Galland....each given by Hitler or Goering...with prettier diamonds each time..did any of you hear about that?

[Dietrich Maerz]

You heard wrong. Galland got four A-pieces, regarding to his own account (Die Ersten und die Letzten, pages 154-155, 1955). Also reported in "Das Eiserne Kreuz 1813-1939" Ordensmuseum Lüdenscheid, 1990, page 200.
Very often wrong information can be found in our hobby, for whatever reason. Always good to fall back on original sources.

[cobra-2001]

cross

Hi Fizz welcome to the Wehrmacht awards forums you can learn a lot here and check out the different forums. They show a lot of fakes on here and you can learn what not to buy. Also Dietrich sells a lot of books on different medals. Cliff

[Viriathus]

Ok I guess you are right..put there is too much silence about fakes IMHO

Now I hear there are three sets of IC with swords and diamonds belonging to Galland....each given by Hitler or Goering...with prettier diamonds each time..did any of you hear about that?

From Gallands's book "Die Ersten und die Letzten",

"How I got the diamonds is another story. Hitler had given me one set with the usual ceremony. Some time later, when I was sitting opposite Göring in his special train at his H.Q. in the Ukraine, Göring looked at me quizzically and said, 'tell me, are those diamonds the Fuhrer gave you? Let me have a look at them.'

I put down my knife and fork and started to take off the Knight's Cross...

... Göring took my diamonds in his hand and scrutinised them. 'No,' he said with a grimace of disapproval. 'These aren't diamonds at all. They're just stones, ordinary stones. The Fuhrer has been swindled over this. He knows a a lot about guns, battleships and tanks but hasn't a clue about diamonds. Look here, Galland, I'll get some for you. Then you will see what diamonds really are. I still have a few left'.

He took the Diamonds and I fastened on my Knights Cross with a paper clip. Later I went to Karinhall to see Göring. The Diamonds had been made by his court jeweller and Göring was as pleased as a child.

'Look here,' said Göring, holding a decoration in each hand so that the diamonds sparkled. 'These are the Fuhrer's Diamonds and these are the Reichmarschall's. Do you see the difference? Now, which one of us knows about diamonds?' I had to admit that he was right. The Reichmarschall's had a beauty of their own, they were larger and had a wonderful brilliance. Compared with them, the Fuhrer's stones looked very inferior. He gave me both decorations back and I now had two sets.

Well, later it seems that Hitler found out about this and stated that the original pair he had awarded were only 'temporary'. He then ordered another pair made which was presented to Galland as a third set after he criticised the second (Göring's pair) as 'just ordinary stones'.

Towards the end of the war my command post near Berlin was completely destroyed by bombs, and among other things I lost set No. 3. When Hitler heard of this he had a new set made. This was my fourth".

[fizz]

Ok so there are 4 not three...ok but I heard right..there were more than one...as any normal person would think...

how to tell one from the other and not be sold a fifth or sixth as a fake..are names inscribed on them? Do we know where the 3 or 4 Sets are? I need one to go with my Galland Display of guns presented to him by his command pilots.

[Exile]

it comes with "a signed and sealed certification from Charles Snyder Jr, retired Air Force officer and militaria dealer, declaring that he received this Knight's Cross personally from Galland on a visit to his home".

Charles Snyder must have sold dodgy KCs with that story a hundred times by now. There are lots of people in the world that happily pay good money for a story.

Matt

[DonC]

RIA also has von Witzleben's uniform and one belonging to Friedrich Christiansen on the same auction - neither of which have ironclad provenance. Looks like once again RIA is being used to dump somebody's mistakes or as a schill for unscrupulous turds like Charlie - I wonder if Snyder is the actual consignor or some poor sap who finally discovered the truth about him is trying to recoup his money...

Don