The Last Public Swastikas in Berlin (video and photos)

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During my trip to Berlin last year, I asked our tour guide, a university researcher in Nazi history, if there are any public displays of swastikas left in Berlin.

Sure enough, he said, there are two symbols of Hitler’s Third Reich, illegal in most cases in Germany since the end of World War II, remaining in the city.

The Reichssportfeld, today known as Olympiapark Berlin, hosted the 1936 Olympics and many sporting events since. On display just outside the stadium is the Olympic bell, which was made for the ’36 games and survived a fall in 1947 when the British destroyed the tower that housed it.

The two swastikas protrude from the base of the bell and are partially filled in. Around them read the words: “Ich rufe die Jugend der Welt,” or “I call the youth of the world.”

Below is a video I made about the bell, plus some photos of the bell and park.

Crowds gather for the 1936 Olympic games

A view from inside the Olympic stadium

The British rebuilt the bell tower in 1962 after destroying it in 1947

German soldiers guarding the bell

An eagle holding the Olympic rings on the bell

One of two swastikas on the bell

The view as you approach Olympiapark Berlin

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