Kl Dachau Dog Tag

[Matt L]

Interesting- I'd have expected with the sheer number of Soviet prisoners, and the fact that they themselves didn't get identity tags universally (there was some kind of little bakelite tube for a piece of paper or something?), that as prisoners they wouldn't have gotten anything significant either. But my understanding is the oval Stalag discs are early- used when there weren't any purpose-made POW discs and it was probably very surprising how many the Wehrmacht captured at the beginning of the campaigns. Someone must have realized it was better to make them obviously different and that they had to make lots of them LOL

[Tiger IV]

Here are some pictures of different prisoner ID-Tag's:

1. OFLAG XIIID (Soviet prisoners in Nürnberg). Later in war displaced to K. L. Flossenbürg.

2. STALAG VA (Ludwigsburg)

3. STALAG XVIIA (also known as Stammlager Kaisersteinbruch)

4. STALAG IIA (Neubrandenburg - Fünfeichen)

[Matt L]

Very cool Tiger- notice how all those non-rectangular ones still aren't the 'normal' German style from WWII; the first one looks like the later WWI type (probably old stock), the second large one is very different being a totally different design and embossed rather than impression stamped, and the little ones are reminiscent of a couple of other countries' tags- like Denmark's.

[Tiger IV]

The most interesting thing is: I found all ID-Tags on the same place. Maybe some of them are older than WWII (old stock) but all the ID-Tags were used in WWII.

[Feuerbach]

I have seen and owned prisoners ID tags from concentration camp. They were round and one piece, made of aluminium, about 30mm and had a number and a letter stamped on them. Most I had did have a J (Jew) on but I also had ones with other letters. I know for 100 procent they are real because I dug them up myself on a patch of land between a former concentration camp and the train rails leading to Poland. The prisoners were stripped of what ever they had and these items like wooden buttons and these discs can still be found there today. I came across a hole in the ground, like a well (dont know how to explain in English) and found loads of items belonging to prisoners, just before they were put on transport. The items were also spoons, pottery with names on them and these discs. Also out of the hole I found shoes made of wood and hand carved childens toys, specticalls and believe it or not; I even found women stockings. Never thought the prisoners were aloud to have items such as these, but it seems they did have personal items in the camp.
As I did not want to have these items in my possesion I have donated them all. I still have pictures of them all somewhere, also of the discs.

[Tiger IV]

Hi Feuerbach!

Very interesting but the round discs where the Tag's for the laundry bags and fixed on top of them. It's not a "ID-Tag" worn by the prisoners like the rectangular ID-Tags but a mark for the prisoners personal stuff (inside the laundry bags) which was confiscatet by the guards before they came to the K. L..

- - Updated - -

Can you show me some pictures of the round marks?

[kindzjal]

4. STALAG IIA (Neubrandenburg - Fünfeichen)

Those are both pre war Polish dog tags, later used as POWtags.
My grandfather was a POW at that camp: