Long-lost photographs depicting the final moments of 200 Greek communists executed by Nazi firing squad on May Day 1944 have been recovered, offering a rare visual record of one of the worst atrocities of the German occupation. The images, posted on eBay by Belgian collector Tim de Craene, show the men walking into the Kaisariani firing range in Athens with their heads held high, seemingly unafraid, as they went to their deaths chanting partisan songs.
The Greek culture ministry announced on Friday that it had signed a preliminary agreement to purchase the photographs, which it described as 'a monument of exceptional historical importance'. The prints, believed to have been taken by Wehrmacht lieutenant Hermann Heuer, were part of a collection of 262 images documenting daily life in occupied Greece.
Vangelis Sakkatos, a 96-year-old veteran leftist who has lived near the execution site for decades, said the images confirmed stories of the men's bravery that had been passed down through generations. 'Their heroism was the stuff of myth,' he said. 'Now we can see that courage before our eyes.'
The executions were carried out in retaliation for the fatal ambush of a German general by communist guerrillas. Until the photographs emerged, testimony of the men's final moments relied solely on handwritten notes they had thrown from trucks as they were driven to their deaths from the notorious Chaidari camp.
Greek historians have hailed the discovery as exceptional, noting that the images will aid research into Nazi-era atrocities and open up discussion about the country's subsequent civil war. The May Day executions have long inspired Greek artists and are seen as a defining moment of the communist-led anti-Nazi resistance.
