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An original 7x9" vintage photo (NOT a modern reprint) from an estate collection of vintage military / aircraft press photos.
Photo Overview
This Associated Press press photo from June 10, 1946 captures Lt. Fred N. Hergert and Maj. John D. Evans of Lincoln, Nebraska - both of the Army Provost Marshal\'s Office - examining photographs of recovered loot from Kronberg Castle, Germany. The two officers are leaning over a desk covered with reconnaissance-style photographs, pointing out specific items. The recovered items had been found in Hudson, Wisconsin, and a Chicago railroad station locker following the arrest of Col. Jack W. Durant and WAC Capt. Kathleen B. Durant in one of the most sensational post-war military theft scandals.
The Kronberg Castle jewels - belonging to the royal House of Hesse - represented one of the most brazen thefts of the post-World War II occupation era. Among the spread of photographs on the desk, viewers can make out images of jewelry, coins, and other valuables. A box of Kleenex is visible in the background, lending an oddly domestic touch to the otherwise serious military intelligence scene.
Historical Notes
The Kronberg Castle jewel theft was one of the most dramatic scandals of the post-WWII American occupation of Germany. The Hessian Crown Jewels - a trove of diamonds, pearls, gold, and historic royal regalia belonging to the Landgrave of Hesse - had been hidden in the castle walls for safekeeping during the war. U.S. Army Col. Jack Durant, who was assigned to oversee the castle, discovered the cache and, along with his wife WAC Capt. Kathleen Durant and poker partner Capt. Kathleen Nash, orchestrated the theft of the priceless collection.
When the scheme unraveled in 1946, some jewels were recovered from the locations described in this very photo - Hudson, Wisconsin, and a Chicago railroad station locker. However, many pieces were never recovered and remain missing to this day. Col. Durant was court-martialed and sentenced to five years hard labor, though the sentence was later reduced. The case became a symbol of the temptations and abuses that accompanied the U.S. occupation of postwar Europe, and the missing Hessian jewels remain one of history\'s great unsolved treasure mysteries. The full story was later dramatized in the book and film \'The Crown Jewels.\'
Text Present
AP caption label (back of photo):
1392
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO FROM CHICAGO
CAUTION: USE CREDIT
TELL OF HUNT FOR HESSIAN CROWN JEWELS
LT. FRED N. HERGERT (LEFT) AND MAJ. JOHN D. EVANS, OF LINCOLN, NEB., BOTH OF THE ARMY PROVOST MARSHAL\'S OFFICE, LOOK OVER PHOTOGRAPHS JUNE 10 OF PART OF THE KRONBERG CASTLE LOOT WHICH WAS RECOVERED IN HUDSON, WIS., AND A CHICAGO RAILROAD STATION LOCKER. THEY EXPLAINED THAT SOME OF THE JEWELS WERE IN THE HANDS OF A "FENCE" WHEN THE ARMY SEIZED COL. JACK W. DURANT AND WAC CAPT. KATHLEEN B. DURANT.
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO
MW 6/10/46 STF-EM (26)
CX PEO DR NA MI2 GD FT WAYNE MID ABC NYNEG
Date stamp (lower right, back): JUN 14 1946
Print analysis
This is a Type 1 original Associated Press press photo. The AP caption label is dated MW 6/10/46 (June 10, 1946), and the date stamp on the back reads JUN 14 1946, indicating the print was distributed within days of the photograph being taken. The silver gelatin paper, the AP wire service label, and the date stamp all confirm this is a contemporaneous original print from 1946.
Condition
Please see photos for condition. In fair to good vintage condition. Some of the photos in this collection have hole punches, age wear, light wrinkling, etc. These appear to have originated from a working press archive.
