The Crematorium

Station Z

(Attributed SS nickname for "extermination" part of the camp)

From August 1943, there were four coal fired crematory ovens in the Sachsenhausen crematorium, each capable of cremating up-to 8 bodies at a time. The four ovens could process 600 bodies per 24 hours, but the Nazis avoided cremations at night, as the flames leaping from the chimney attracted unwanted attention. The Soviets decided to blow up the crematorium, twice, in 1952 and 1953, for reasons unknown to this day.

The site of the former Crematorium

Nope, this isn't a modern crematorium, it's a new-ish, fancy cover which protects the remnants of the 

crematorium and gas chambers, and it's the 40 metre tall obelisk erected in 1961 by the communists.

 The writing on a wall just as you enter the complex

The other side of the above wall. And hello, it's the same sculpture that's in the communist built New Museum

A museum sign depicting the ruins in this semi-covered complex, number 18 denotes the location of the crematorium

Soviet photo from June 1945, of how the crematorium look from the outside (original photo)

The crematory ovens viewable in the distance

Commemorative blocks in front of the crematory ovens 

 The four crematory ovens. What a rubbish photo. I didn't realise how dark it was in that corner.

This single oven (on the left) could cremate upto 8 bodies at a time

The crematory ovens on the right

A memorial plague commemorating "Station Z" (the final stop), the krematoriums (crematoriums) and gaskammer (gas chamber) 

These are clipped from my photo of a museum sign near them crematorium, they show Soviet

photos from May or June 1945 of the ovens in the crematorium  at Sachsenhausen

This is clipped from the same photo, it describes how, in August 1943, the Germans fitted four new coke fired crematoria ovens made by the Berlin firm Kori into this crematorium. These miracle ovens could each cremate between 6 and 8 corpses simultaneously, and combined they could cremate 600 bodies in 24 hours. But as flames shot out of the chimney, the cremations mostly took place during the day, to avoid .... Unfortunately I didn't take the best of photos, as I missed why the Germans wanted to avoid lighting up the night sky with their flame bleching crematorium chimney. To avoid attracting British Lancaster bombers perhaps?

The original photo, full sized is linked here

This cartoon was supposedly drawn in 1945 by a Victor Siminski

The original photo, full sized is linked here

The similarity between Siminski's cartoon and these posed photos from Dachau is uncanny.

photos taken without permission from scrapbookpages ☺

Comparing them together... Pointing out the similarities is too easy. Try and spot the difference. (enlarged)

In 1952 and then again in 1953, for reasons unknown to this day, the Soviets blew-up "Station Z",

which containing the Sachsenhausen gas chamber and crematorium (original photo inc text)