Greece has recovered photographs showing the 1944 execution of 200 communists by Nazi forces in Athens, an event that has become a symbol of resistance. The images, discovered on eBay by Belgian collector Tim de Craene, were purchased by the Greek culture ministry after public outcry.
The photos depict the men walking into the Kaisariani firing range on May Day 1944, moments before their execution. Witnesses say the victims went to their deaths chanting partisan songs, and the images confirm their courage. The prints are believed to have been taken by Wehrmacht lieutenant Hermann Heuer.
The executions were retaliation for a guerrilla attack on a German general. The event has inspired Greek artists and is considered a high point of communist-led anti-Nazi resistance. Historians describe the photos as of exceptional historical importance, filling a gap in archival material from the Nazi occupation.
The collection includes 262 photographs, some bearing the date of the massacre. The culture ministry said the images allow a new perspective on occupied Greece. The discovery is expected to spur further research into Nazi atrocities and the subsequent Greek civil war.
