03:41Germany: Dachau’s 'people in barbed wire’ memorial restored at site of Nazi concentration camp
The International Monument on the site of the Nazi concentration camp in Dachau has been refurbished as part of a three-year renovation project, as seen in footage filmed on Tuesday.
The sculpture, created by artist Nandor Glid and erected 55 years ago, depicts human bodies caught in a barbed wire fence.
"It shows how desperate inmates, seeing no way out, threw themselves into the barbed wire, which was electrically charged and was deadly when touched," explained Karl Freller, director of the Bavarian Memorials Foundation.
The large bronze sculpture, which stands at over 11 metres high, was in danger of collapse, and needed to be secured and reinforced.
"They (the parts of the sculpture) have many cantilevered components that are subjected to different forces, which in turn leads to corresponding damage or weakening of the different areas," said restorer, Shimon Mahnke. "What we've done is stop further decay."
Dachau opened as an internment site for political prisoners in 1933. It became the model for all later Nazi concentration camps, holding over 200,000 people. 41,500 were killed before American troops arrived in 1945.
03:41The International Monument on the site of the Nazi concentration camp in Dachau has been refurbished as part of a three-year renovation project, as seen in footage filmed on Tuesday.
The sculpture, created by artist Nandor Glid and erected 55 years ago, depicts human bodies caught in a barbed wire fence.
"It shows how desperate inmates, seeing no way out, threw themselves into the barbed wire, which was electrically charged and was deadly when touched," explained Karl Freller, director of the Bavarian Memorials Foundation.
The large bronze sculpture, which stands at over 11 metres high, was in danger of collapse, and needed to be secured and reinforced.
"They (the parts of the sculpture) have many cantilevered components that are subjected to different forces, which in turn leads to corresponding damage or weakening of the different areas," said restorer, Shimon Mahnke. "What we've done is stop further decay."
Dachau opened as an internment site for political prisoners in 1933. It became the model for all later Nazi concentration camps, holding over 200,000 people. 41,500 were killed before American troops arrived in 1945.