National WWI Museum in Kansas City

[Peter B]

Did you guys see that article about the German who had a Panther tank in his cellar? Plus other stuff.

Germany: WW2 Panther tank seized from pensioner's cellar

German army removes haul of military hardware from 78-year-old's home.

www.bbc.com

Now they are fining him.

German lawyers wrangle over pensioner's WW2 tank in basement

The 84-year-old kept the vehicle in his basement, along with an anti-aircraft gun and a torpedo.

www.bbc.com

I'd like to meet him!

Peter

 

[pickelhauben]

Wow,
What a huge basement he must have had .
They seized a full 88 as well along with several weapons.

Nice museum in Kansas .

 

[JohnS3rd]

He must have one huge basement! LOL

 

[poniatowski]

Too bad there weren't more around like him who had the balls to take artifacts from the battlegrounds and save them.

 

[poniatowski]

Also, some broken torsion bars on that Panther! I'd have done exactly what he did.

 

[Naprawiacz]

Too bad there weren't more around like him who had the balls to take artifacts from the battlegrounds and save them.

In Poland under Soviet occupation in 1945, collecting equipment from battlefields was punishable by death.

 

[poniatowski]

In Poland under Soviet occupation in 1945, collecting equipment from battlefields was punishable by death.

I believe that. Probably a LONG prison sentence in Germany and elsewhere. Still, I'd have talked to the 'city council' to talk to the 'occupying forces' to start a local museum to memorialize the local history. It's interesting what a little chalk and 'Save for the (insert city name) museum' on the side of a vehicle might do.

 

[seagull]

I echo Alan's comments above: Curatorial 'fashion' has all but dimissed this approach to museum display. The Imperial War Musuem was once like this but is now a dismal shadow of it's former self. The Army Museum in Vienna is the only major museum I have visited recently which really tries to show as much as possible.
Steve

 

[bcalkins]

Great photos!!! I want to get there some day. As wonderful as it looks, it is still typical of a museum, great at showing objects, but often wrong in the details. The Austro-Hungarian cap and fez are misidentified in the placard text.

 

[Gustaf]

Great photos!!! I want to get there some day. As wonderful as it looks, it is still typical of a museum, great at showing objects, but often wrong in the details. The Austro-Hungarian cap and fez are misidentified in the placard text.

The quality of labeling is the one thing that disappointed me.

 

[bcalkins]

I echo Alan's comments above: Curatorial 'fashion' has all but dimissed this approach to museum display. The Imperial War Musuem was once like this but is now a dismal shadow of it's former self. The Army Museum in Vienna is the only major museum I have visited recently which really tries to show as much as possible.
Steve

Boy I agree!! Frankly, I like a museum that is stuffed floor to ceiling with artifacts. Then, If I see something that piques my curiosity, I find a book to read about it. But I understand most people are not like us....they are history deficient. So a museum at it's best, strikes a nice balance between telling a story and showing artifacts. Too many museums today focus mostly on story telling and trying to set an emotional tone. I believe that this approach leaves most visitors feeling like, "Well, now I know totally all about that subject". A visit to any museum should leave people "almost" satisfied, and wanting more which they will hopefully seek out for themselves.

 

[aicusv]

I was just reading that the Panther was actually one assembled by the British after the war from surplus parts.