IMPRESSIVE THIRD REICH LUFTWAFFE BUILDING EAGLE WITH CAPTURE HISTORY.

This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 3/17/2022

Impressive Third Reich Luftwaffe building eagle which was recovered from Berlin at the end of World War II. The eagle was supposedly removed from the Luftwaffe RLM (Reichsluftfahrtministerium) or "Ministry of Aviation" located on Wilhelmstrasse in central Berlin by a US Army Intelligence Officer. The RLM building was one of the few official Third Reich buildings in central Berlin to survive the severe Allied bombings during 1944-1945. Through oral history with supporting information, this impressive, yet crude eagle, was captured at the end of the war by William Burns "Bill" Fraser. Fraser was born on April 25, 1910 in Port Arthur, Texas. While he was a junior in high school in Oklahoma, he was offered an appointment to the United States Military Academy at West Point the following year. In order to accept this appointment, Fraser pushed himself and was able to graduate high school in 3 years. Despite being small in stature, Fraser was able to meet the physical requirements by "eating prodigious amounts of bananas." He excelled at West Point both athletically and scholarly with particular success in gymnastics and horsemanship. After graduation, Fraser was able to secure a commission in the cavalry and was later assigned as commander of the Maines on board the USS Wyoming. His additional duties would include but were not limited to duties as the assistant gunnery and navigation officer on the midshipman's summer cruise. After this assignment, Bill pleasantly joked that he was "the only true Horse Marine". His first assignment with the cavalry was at Fort Bliss with the 8th Cavalry from 1932-1934. One of his most crowning achievements was being the only winner of the 1st Cavalry Division's Hunt Bowl, which was a 2 - 1/2 mile steeplechase which was judged as being too hazardous and never contested again. He later earned an MS in Mechanical Engineering and was sent to Fort Riley in order to attend Cavalry school where he joined the 13th Cavalry. the 13th became a mechanized unit and was sent to Fort Knox as a motor officer. Over the next several years, Fraser was the Executive Officer of various regiments of the 6th and 12th Armored Divisions. He was later called back to teach horsemanship at West Point in 1944. In May 1944, he was assigned to the 8th Army as Deputy G-2 at Fort Sam Houston Texas. Shortly after Fraser was assigned as Deputy G-2 of the 9th Army and sent overseas to England in June 1944, later traveling throughout Europe, eventually meeting the Russians at the Ruhr River. He was occasionally hospitalized for old riding injuries, but remained in Germany after the war during the Occupation. He spent time in Tolz, Germany, as Chief of intelligence and counter intelligence and was later assigned to the 1st Infantry Division fulfilling the same intelligence roles before being sent back to the United States in 1948. He continued to serve in the Army in the post war years, the Korean War, and eventually retired due to disability in 1959. Bill Fraser passed away in San Francisco on October 2, 1997 after a second, short battle with cancer. His military career is quite impressive and due to his various assignments in Europe with intelligence clearances, it is more than possible that Fraser recovered this Third Reich Luftwaffe Building Eagle whilst part of the occupying Army in Germany. During the occupation, in order to set up military government organizations, the Western powers requisitioned real estate in order to have a base of operations to carry out their occupation duties. The former Luftwaffe district headquarters, Luftgaukommando III in Berlin-Zehlendorf, became the US headquarters in Berlin. The RLM building was located just across the border of the US occupation zone, inside the Soviet occupation zone. It is possible that Fraser ventured over to the Soviet zone, explored the RLM building, and recovered this symbol of the Third Reich. It is also possible that Fraser mistook the Luftgaukommando III headquarters for the RLM building and recovered it from his new intelligence headquarters when he moved in and there was simply a transcription error when the eagle was passed down. The eagle is of a multi-piece cast iron construction: body, claws, wings, and feathers. Eagle is mounted on its original base, and no foundry mark is visible. Eagle retains approximately 80% of its gilt finish, with oxidation and light freckling. The eagle is accompanied by a history of Fraser's service as well as his obituary. An impressive piece of WWII history with an interesting story. Overall good. WEZ/JLD

This is not a standard shippable item and will require 3rd party shipping or pickup arrangements to be made.

Item Dimensions: 36" X 20" HEAVY

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