Photo: Andreas Mettenleiter
In just twenty minutes – just a few weeks before the end of the war – Würzburg was destroyed, but it was also rebuilt in a remarkably short time. A quarter of a century later there are hardly any eyewitnesses left – and the memory of the bombing night has changed over the decades.
An extensive illustrated book has now been published, which describes the history, course and consequences of the air raid in historical images and documents. The reconstruction and the change in the culture of remembrance in dealing with the fall of the old Würzburg are also illustrated using impressive images.
This resulted in a work that was densely illustrated with almost 950 illustrations on 256 pages, which, of course, despite its abundance of images, cannot deal exhaustively with the complex subject and therefore highlights individual aspects as examples. The text is limited to short captions and deliberately largely avoids evaluations; Allied leaflets, Nazi propaganda, US newspaper articles and eyewitness reports make the different points of view clear.
Many historical photos
The original concept of also documenting the extensive anniversary program for the round anniversary in 2020 could not be realized because the majority of the events were canceled at short notice as part of the Corona preventive measures. To this end, the numerous memorials, monuments and memorial plaques were depicted, which are present in different ways in the public consciousness and some of which are hardly known.
So the book is not only a treasure trove for long-established Würzburgers not only because of the many historical photos, often published here for the first time, but also because of the comprehensive overview of the different aspects. For example, the remains of air protection devices in private houses that have survived to this day and which hardly anyone was interested in in the past.
The illustrations of paintings, watercolors and drawings by well-known and completely unknown artists on the destruction of Würzburg deserve special mention. For example, the oil painting from 1948, which was used for the dust jacket, comes from the photo retailer and photographer Erich Duttenhofer. Like numerous other illustrated works, it slumbered privately until it was tracked down for the book project.
Accompanying exhibition in the Siebold Museum
The accompanying exhibition in the Siebold Museum, which addresses this aspect of the ’16. March 1945 ’, namely the artist’s view of the destroyed Würzburg, is unfortunately currently not accessible due to the forced closure of the museums. Interested parties can hope to see the very different works of art soon in the Siebold-Palais.
Attention should also be drawn to the large-format, high-resolution stereo recording that American planes recorded after the destruction of the city with two cameras: This is printed in detail on several pages – the required 3D glasses are included with the book.
The high quality linen ribbon with the simple title ‘Würzburg – March 16, 1945’ is available for 24.95 euros in bookstores and at Papier Pfeiffer. An English edition is also available for the same price.
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Wurzburg
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Andreas Mettenleiter
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3D glasses
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Illustrated books
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Book projects
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Books
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Monuments
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Air strikes
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Doom
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reconstruction
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drawings
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destruction
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