Third Reich Adolf Hitler: Silver Cigar Box from the Table Silver of the New Reich Chancellery, Berlin

This silver cigar box from Adolf Hitler's personal table silver represents an extraordinarily rare object from the representative furnishings of the National Socialist regime. Manufactured around 1938/39 by the renowned Munich jewelers Franz and Hermann Wandinger, it belonged to an exclusive ensemble of smoking accessories used at official state receptions in Hitler's residences.

The rectangular box of 925 sterling silver (92.5 percent pure silver) with highly polished surfaces displays on the lid a centrally applied national eagle with swastika clutching an oak wreath, flanked by the initials “A” and “H”. A continuous Greek key (meander) border pattern frames the lid. The box stands on three-stage feet and measures 7 x 22.4 x 15.5 centimeters with a weight of approximately 1220 grams. The interior is lined with finely grained cedar wood. The base bears the jeweler's mark “FHW” of the Wandingers, the fineness hallmark “925,” and the crescent moon and crown as German state marks for silver of this purity.

Hitler's smoking accessories typically comprised several components: cigar boxes, cigarette boxes in various sizes, match box holders, cigar cutters, and serving trays. Two distinct manufacturer patterns existed: the formal pattern (mainly by Bruckmann & Söhne featuring detailed raised eagle with Greek key border) and the smoking accessories by FHW. Among all objects in his silver collection, cigar boxes rank among the rarest items—sources mention that just two specimens were placed in the Kehlsteinhaus (Eagle's Nest). Today only a mere handful of these boxes remain in existence.

These silver smoking accessories were used at official state receptions and for high-ranking state guests in Hitler's various residences: the Neue Reichskanzlei (New Reich Chancellery) in Berlin, the Berghof in Berchtesgaden, the Kehlsteinhaus (Eagle's Nest), the Führerbau in Munich, and the Braunes Haus in Munich. Although Hitler himself was a committed non-smoker, tobacco products and corresponding accessories were standard equipment at large receptions for his guests. Household management was under Arthur Kannenberg, Hitler's House Intendant from 1933.

The Neue Reichskanzlei, designed by Albert Speer, provided the architectural setting for these representative objects. Hitler commissioned Speer on 11 January 1938 with the construction and demanded completion within one year by 10 January 1939, although preliminary planning had begun as early as 1935. Over 4,500 workers labored in shifts around the clock and completed the building 48 hours ahead of schedule. The 400-meter-long and 20-meter-high structure on Voßstraße in Berlin encompassed grand marble halls, a 150-meter gallery (twice the length of the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles), and lavish state reception rooms. As the representational epicenter of Hitler's power, the Reichskanzlei served until its severe damage during the Battle of Berlin in April and May 1945. The ruins were not completely cleared until the 1950s.

After World War II, many pieces of Hitler's silverware were taken by Allied soldiers as war trophies from the Reichskanzlei, Berghof, Kehlsteinhaus, and other locations. Some pieces remain in private collections today, others in museums, including a 41-piece set at the Pinakothek der Moderne in Munich.

According to its provenance, the present example was obtained as war booty by French Lieutenant Armand Kauffmann, who served as an interrogation officer with the U.S. Army in 1946. He received the cigar box from a German prisoner of war in Berchtesgaden in exchange for his release. The documentation includes a color photocopy of Kauffmann's French military identification from 1933, a photo negative and prints from the 1950s, and a statement from his son. At a Hermann Historica auction in 2005, a comparable cigar box sold for 37,000 euros plus buyer's premium, underscoring the extraordinary rarity of these objects.