08-15-2005, 05:02 PM
d-riemer Wrote:Here is a Bulgarian table medal showing the famous scene from the 1945 Moscow Victory Parade with a complete swastika and even "Adolf Hitler" on the declined ensign of the Leibstandarte. For comparison, I show a Polish medal with a swastika broken beyond recognition. I have the impression that the swastika was off limits in the Warsaw-Pact countries on any award as the devil's mark. The Bulgarians, due to their long alliance with Hitler-Germany, might have made an exception. I would appreciate any input that would correct this assumption.
That thing on polish medal isn't actually svastika.
It is the symbol of "Rodło". It is a simplified picture ("plan") of Vistula river. I don't have the reference at hand right now, but unless I am mistaken it used to be a symbol of the Polish who lived in Germany before the war and later became a symbol of "Recovered Lands" (those gained after the war from Germany).
And a bit off topic... Swastika symbol (but a bit different from nazi one) is one of the most popular decorative motifs of the highlanders of Podhale region (it has pagan roots as well) and thanks to that it is met on military items related with podhale units.
