Tragically topical: Nazi field printings of two views of Kyiv (both unrecorded)

[Unidentified German Army "Motorized Surveying and Map Detachment" / Vermessungs- und Karten-Abteilung Motorisiert]

[UKRAINE - TWO UNRECORDED NAZI WEHRMACHT FIELD PRINTINGS OF KYIV]. "Blick v.d. Lissa Gora auf die Stadt Kijew" TOGETHER WITH: "Blick v.d. Zitadelle (Lawra) nach Osten und Nordosten"

Kyiv: 1941 (before Nov. 3). Together 2 views (205 x 325 mm; 8" x 13") printed on cheap, thin paper (Ad 1: long closed tear through image without loss, light staining creasing, edges a little frayed; Ad 2: short closed tears along edges, two small holes in blank area at lower left, light staining). Overall in very condition, suitable for exhibition and study. Very good. Item #3877

Tragically topical, apparently unrecorded views of Kyiv, being rude field printings on cheap paper, likely created by Nazis during the so-called "First Battle" of Kiev (Aug. 23 - Sept. 26, 1941) or shortly thereafter. We are mindful that the present views are historically "toxic," but given the context of the current Russian war-crimes against the people of the Ukraine, we believe that there is an urgent need for them to be preserved.

The first print is a view of Kyiv looking at the city center from the south, specifically from the wooded hill of Lysa Hora which had a complex fortification system. During the German occupation the fort became a military plant and tank base. Here Kyiv rises above the Dnipro river (on the right). The key below identifies 22 sites, mostly of military significance, such as buildings, bridges, power plants, hospitals, factories, churches and cloisters. To each site is assigned a code consisting of a letter (or letters) and a numeral (or numerals): these are certainly map references (i.e. K10, L10, F-G7, etc.). We have been unable to locate this exact map, but large bird's-eye maps of Kyiv taken by the Vermessungs- und Karten-Abteilung survive in the Kiev Polytechnic Museum (and also the David Rumsey Collection). That a need for vantage-point views such as ours to accompany such a map seems self-evident.

The second is a view of Kyiv taken from the Great Lavra Bell Tower in the Pechersk Lavra monastery, strategically positioned in the city center, looking towards the Dnieper Valley in the northeast. The key identifies 13 sites, likewise militarily important, but with the notable inclusion of the "Podol Judenstadt" (no. 6), a Jewish neighborhood to the north of the city.

Our prints may date before Nov. 3, 1941 because on this day, just two months into the German occupation of Kyiv, a huge explosion brought down the Uspensky Sobor cathedral in the Pechersk Lavra monastery, across the courtyard from the Bell Tower from which the present view was drawn.

The "Motorized Surveying and Map Detachment" was an integral part of the German military, and accompanied the army throughout the European and North African theater. These surveyors, photographers, and printers traveled with equipment to the front lines, sometimes on special trains. The detachments were self-contained, and had the capability to print onsite, even in the most hostile conditions. Ephemeral views such as the present pair were printed in small numbers for the sole use of German occupying troops. The present prints were purchased by a Munich bookseller from a private collector in Germany, along with other documents from the period.

NOTA BENE: These prints were both purchased at an auction in Germany in early January 2021, i.e. BEFORE the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022.

Price: $1,800.00