Belgian collector reaches agreement with Greece on Nazi massacre photographs
Belgian collector and dealer Tim De Craene has reached an agreement in principle with the Greek ministry of culture on a series of historical photographs of a Nazi massacre in 1944. The Greek government wants to purchase the collection and incorporate it into the national heritage, so that the images are preserved and made accessible for research and remembrance.
According to Tim De Craene, the images and documents will ultimately “benefit the Greek people and their collective commemoration of a dark episode in their history”. The Belgian collector and dealer is relieved with the agreement in principle, after the commotion that has arisen in recent weeks, both at home and abroad.
No details are currently given about the specific details or timing of the transfer. It is also unclear whether a purchase price has already been agreed for the images, which were initially offered for sale on eBay. The price rose to thousands of euros there, but De Craene stopped the auction when the commotion arose.
The photographs show the execution of resistance fighters near Athens, more specifically the mass shooting of about 200 prisoners in the Kaisariani district on 1 May 1944, one of the most serious Nazi crimes in Greece during the Second World War.
Greece declared the photos national heritage and sent a team of experts on Friday to Evergem, East Flanders province, to examine the photographs with a view to their possible acquisition by the Greek state. This investigation confirmed the authenticity of the material, according to a statement on the Greek news site Protothema. “An agreement in principle was signed between the ministry of culture and the collector, and the collection was removed from the online auction website," the statement added.
According to the Greek ministry of culture, the collection comprises a total of 262 photographs, supplemented by several documents, which were taken during the German occupation of Greece in 1943 and 1944. In addition to the executions, the images also show scenes from occupied Athens and daily life under the occupiers.
The Greek government wants to purchase the collection and incorporate it into the national heritage, so that the images are preserved and made accessible for research and commemoration. It is not yet clear whether and where the images will ultimately be exhibited once the deal with the Belgian owner has been finalised.
#FlandersNewsService | A photograph of Greek Communist political prisoners before their execution is projected onto a wall as part of a demonstration © PHOTO Aggelos NAKKAS / AFP
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