Germany, Luftwaffe. A 1941 Trench Art Memorial Plaque to a Luftwaffe Blitz Crew, Made by the Sole Survivor

(Gedenktafel der Luftwaffe). A unique 1941 Luftwaffe trench art memorial plaque, consisting of a dark brown wooden frame decorated with hand-carved oak leaves which are joined together at the bottom by a Stahlhelm, surrounding a black painted field insert with faithful replicas of the 1939 Iron Cross I Class, Pilot’s Badge, Observer Badge, Radio Operator and Air Gunner Badge, and Bomber Clasp, each executed in a silvered zink alloy, the Iron Cross flanked by initials “U-S-G-M”, situated above raised and silvered names of “LT. HEILMANN”, “GEFR. MÜLLER”, “FW. SABLONSKI”, and “FW. BLASCHYK”, with three flanked by a cross indicating an individual killed in action (Blaschyk being the exception), in turn situated above a date of “3. 2. 1941”, the reverse retaining a paper liner bearing a handwritten maker’s dedication of “P/W 60775 - OFW. BLASCHYK, WALDEMAR - CAMP 40”, measuring 22.5 cm (w) x 26.5 cm (h), a superb and researchable example of trench art in extremely fine condition.

Footnote: Deutsches Bundesarchiv records indicate that a Waldemar Blaschyk died on 4 February 1941 over England while serving with Kampfgeschwader 2 which, at the time, was notably engaged in bombing operations against the United Kingdom as part of The Blitz. It is likely that Blaschyk was incorrectly presumed dead by German authorities following the downing of his aircraft, which claimed the lives of the rest of his crew, while he himself had successfully bailed out to be taken prisoner and interned in Camp 40 (Farnham).