Anyone who has seen a World War Two movie or A&E history documentary should recognize this structure. This is the Zeppelintribuene (Zeppelin Grand Stand), the review and viewing stand on the Zeppelin Field. Two main changes have taken place since its heyday. The golden swastika symbol which used to sit atop the center of the stand was blown up after the U.S. Army's victory parade in 1945 (in a scene the film of which has been used in every movie and documentary to signal the end of the war). Also the columns along the main tribune, which were in a poor state of repair, were blown up in 1967 for the safety of visitors (although our tour guide suggested that perhaps also some of the city leaders would be happy to see this structure and its history be erased from their hometown and so are destroying it bit by bit, however laws for the protection of historic sites prevent such a thing from happening now).

It is worth noting that the design of the Grand Stand was based on the look of the Pergamon Altar, in the Pergamon Musem in Berlin. Hitler wanted architecture which would be as grand and look as good in ruins as the ancient Greek temples at Pergamon.

Zeppelintribuene