The Little World

Swastika.

Deal with the idea your own way* – imagine it to be an ancient symbol of good or a modern symbol of evil. Remember whatever you wish to remember. I’m not in charge of your thoughts.

I noted some years ago that there was a legal barrier to display of the swastika in Germany – with penalties for those who tried it. Modellers from the BRD who wrote to me said that they could not get decal sheets with this symbol on it when they bought a plastic model. They asked me to get a sheet of the things at Stanbridges and post it to them so that they could make their Messerschmitts and Heinkels more authentic.

I puzzled over what to say at the time – considering that it was a little difficult for me to be the supplier. In the end I advised them to try a felt tip pen or a stencil, and left it at that.

Then I took a trip to Nürnberg in 1995 and went to the German Transport Museum. There, on the front of a preserved E119 electric locomotive was the adler and the Hk. Not just a paint job – a big fat aluminium casting…Elsewhere in the place was an illuminated U-bahn sign with the same thing in bright black paint. I was forced to conclude that Nürnberg has special privileges – possibly based upon its history.

Now I notice that Hobby Boss from China has decided to solve the problem in a different manner with their 1:72 model of a Messerschmitt Bf 110 twin-engine fighter. The decal sheet has four very oddly shaped angular markings:

The little black half-esses… I do believe that if you were to play tetris with these you might be able to make a passable imitation of a swastika for the tailplanes of the fighter.

Part of me wants to laugh and part of me wants to cry. Part of me wants crackers and cheese, but that’s another story. I cannot say whether I applaud the length to which a Chinese toy maker has to follow de-nazification rulings of 73 years ago or whether I think it is all just a bit of nonsense.

For my part, should I build a model of an airplane that had this on the tail, I’ll leave it off and put a sign next to it saying that it is omitted for social reasons.

*  I won’t touch something with the Hk displayed. It can sit on the floor for me.