In Russia, lots of people collect Nazy stuff and explain it as "we've kicked their ass, now we keep their shit as trophies". Sort of like feudal barons used to hang on the walls of their castles the swords and shields of the knights they'd killed or defeated at tournament. Arguably, this trophy keeping indicates a respect for one's enemy, and it's a big question whether such respect for the Nazis is appropriate.
While the jury's out on it - To the gun.
Surely this is not a gift TO Himmler, but it could be a prize given to the winner of some shooting contest, etc. I hope the shooting contest was not "who can execute the most Jews or Communists per hour", of course.
Now here's my train of thought.
If such contests with such prises were routine, then there had to be hundreds of guns like that. Not all would survive the post-1945 years; I think anyone here would've dumped such "prize" into the nearest bog.
But, that would mean there was a whole bureaucracy about that.
Of course Himmler himself would have nothing to do with such a gun; the bureaucrats would just pick anything they could lay their hands on, slap on the inscription and tie it with a ribbon, or whatever.
And, this bureaucracy couldn't get without a paper trail. There would be records about who was given what gun on what occasion. Again, not all such records perhaps survived - e.g., if the contest in question was among the troops stationed in France, after liberation the French couldve just used them for toiled paper or burned.
But historians of SS couldn't leave such contests unnoticed. So, if I cared a bit about this piece of metal, I'd try to read up on the relevant history. Would add credibility to the story, if anything.
Have I already told the one about Trotsky and giving guns as gifts here?
Last edited by Humpty Dumpty; 01/19/17 05:20 AM.
