LE LOUP DES MERS Posted October 23, 2021 #1 Posted October 23, 2021 I had a surplus store that sadly closed down near me and the new owners did not care for the military stuff and just wanted the building. On the wall was a metal sign that the original owner claimed was an original checkpoint charlie sign. The new owners wanted this sign gone so I bought it. I did not know if it was real so I took it to an antique sign expert and he says he's 90% sure it's original. He can't say 100% because he said he's never seen one before to compere it to. He also told me if it's real it would be extremely rare. So my question to you guys is, is this sign real or fake? I'm personally half and half on this one but that's way I'm posting it on here.
LE LOUP DES MERS Posted October 23, 2021 Author #3 Posted October 23, 2021 I will see if I can find a ruler and I will measure it.
gwb123 Posted October 23, 2021 #4 Posted October 23, 2021 This may be an American Sector sign, but it is not the Checkpoint Charlie sign. The apparent small size of this one makes it questionable. Places where the border was open for crossing would have been limited in number, and the signs would have been very prominent. I can't rule it out completely, but I do know there are reproductions out there.
LE LOUP DES MERS Posted October 24, 2021 Author #5 Posted October 24, 2021 I could not find a ruler so I had to get creative, I used brass knuckles and a $5 dollar bill to show the size of the sign. Hope this helps in determining if it's original, If the exact measurements are needed let me know.
VMI88 Posted October 24, 2021 #6 Posted October 24, 2021 I was stationed in Germany when the wall came down and made numerous trips to Berlin. When the wall first came down there were a variety of sector signs, border posts, etc. for sale. The ones I saw showed signs of wear and I believe they were real. A few months later these were all gone but there were a large number of new reproduction signs on the market. They may even have been made in the same factories that made the originals - that's what happened with a lot of military insignia. I don't recall ever seeing a sign the size of the one in the original post but I suppose it's possible. The ones I remember were large, the same as gwb123 posted. If I recall correctly, the pictures below were taken in the September 1989 just before things started to heat up.
Scarecrow Posted October 24, 2021 #7 Posted October 24, 2021 Hi VMI88, By chance are you and Gil standing in the exact same spot, some years apart? Curious because of the Zimmerstrafe street sign.
VMI88 Posted October 25, 2021 #8 Posted October 25, 2021 1 hour ago, Scarecrow said: Hi VMI88, By chance are you and Gil standing in the exact same spot, some years apart? Curious because of the Zimmerstrafe street sign. I think so. They did a lot of work to Checkpoint Charlie in the mid-80s so the background scenery is different.
gwb123 Posted October 25, 2021 #9 Posted October 25, 2021 1 hour ago, VMI88 said: I think so. They did a lot of work to Checkpoint Charlie in the mid-80s so the background scenery is different. It's probably the same location. They really built up the East German side in later years to make it look more friendly and prosperous. That is the one photo I wanted to turn out from my tour in Germany, to say that I was there. Naturally, it was wet, cold and rainy.
VMI88 Posted October 25, 2021 #10 Posted October 25, 2021 Do you remember when your photos were taken? Your second photo shows the older guardhouse that was replaced at some point - I couldn't find an exact date, just "sometime in the 1980s". Here's a photo of the final building: You can just see the Zimmerstrasse street sign and the "Leaving the American Sector" warning sign in the background behind the guy drinking a Coke.
gwb123 Posted October 26, 2021 #11 Posted October 26, 2021 My photo was taken in either 1981 or 1982.
wulv Posted November 27, 2021 #12 Posted November 27, 2021 i have an authentic sign, this one is from further in Berlin though.
LE LOUP DES MERS Posted November 27, 2021 Author #13 Posted November 27, 2021 Nice would you say mine is authentic? I don't know the exact measurements but I took it to a sign expert and he told me he's 90% sure it's real. 40 minutes ago, wulv said: i have an authentic sign, this one is from further in Berlin though.
wulv Posted November 27, 2021 #14 Posted November 27, 2021 the one i have is wooden from the early 70s. i have no knowledge to relay except that I do know the metal signs had holes drilled in each corner, which the one youve pictured appears to have. my father had a photo that I remember specifically a metal sign with screw holes in each corner.
LE LOUP DES MERS Posted November 27, 2021 Author #15 Posted November 27, 2021 Yeah, mine has four holes but it also looks like it had tape on the back at one time.
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