Hitler/Goering signed document

[Jeman]

Hi all, hope your good and well ! Looked at this recently …..has a COA but still unsure Hitler and Goering ink signed document………….sorry pics arnt great but interesting all the same…..

[Witt]

The document is good and so are the two signatures. This originally belonged to the estate grouping of Oberst Martin Altmann. It was first offered by a respected dealer in Germany. Either the owner of the Gettysburg museum bought it and split it up, or they purchased it from a middle man who split it up. The one who split this up should be ashamed, and I will withhold my opinions about the character of whoever operates in this upstanding manner.
Altmann was a career soldier with a service that spanned from 1914-1945. This included awards of WW1, the interwar, and WW2. He died in 1945 in a Russian camp.
The certificate if authenticity is pretty much worthless; at least he does not charge extra for the highly valuable sheet of paper like others do. They have sold some fake items before so that says a lot about the accompanying certificate that says it was authentic. I will also point out that they are making a pretty penny with this listing. If he acquired it from the dealer in Germany, this document alone has pocketed a ~143% ROI, and that does not even account for the 1936 promotion document for Hauptmann Altmann which I cannot see how much this sold for. The situation would look a little better on their operation if it was sourced from an intermediary seller.

So it is good and you should not be worried at all if you wanted to purchase it, but I will not sugarcoat the facts about the document’s origins. Blissful ignorance with regards to an item carrying such a cost would not be fair. Before you or anyone was to part with their money on this now you have the debate on its veracity and the ethics ahead of time should it be pursued.


Regards, Ben

[DavidRF43]

Witt,

Do you feel/think that the Gettysburg Museum has mostly legit pieces?

I've used their site for reference for a few pieces I've been trying to assert are valid (Wellner silver) and they seem to have pieces that align with the majority of other pieces Ive seen on other sites....never purchased from them though.

[Jeman]

Hi Ben, thank you so much for your very informative post. It’s really interesting and like you say a shame it’s been split up….it looks a great item…….will certainly give it some thought…..really appreciate your advice and knowledge as it’s a bit of a mine field out there for sure………������

[Witt]

I think they can be trusted to a large extent, but probably do not give them blind faith as you wouldn’t for any sellers really. You could probably feel good about any item but still post it here for discussion. Some of their items like medals I do not know much about so other members could opine. I am aware of past troubles with an Eisernes Kreuz with a fake ribbon, a few others with replaced surplus ribbons. A fake SS pith and the Shelton M2 helmet fiasco are about all I have ever read relating to questionable items sold. I share the sentiments others have about their battlefield relic offerings like Normandy sand, D-Day relics, pieces from the Berghof, etc. Some of that stuff has no provenance and could have been plucked from anywhere in the world. If you look around most people talk glowingly of the store besides most of it is overpriced.

[DavidRF43]

Yeah, I've been looking at their silver pieces (mostly the sold ones) to compare them against some pieces someone I've been talking to has for sale to try and get an idea around price and how to gauge if a piece is legit (as best as can be done)...I do wish they had the prices of sold items available so you could see what a piece went for, though.

As for the prices, sometimes if something is uncommon, you either have to pay the higher $$$ or risk not finding one anywhere else unfortuantely