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Original Items: One-of-a-kind. Few artifacts can claim such a direct connection to one of the most important judicial proceedings in world history. This is an original autograph from the remarkable Daniel Roman Nuremberg Collection, an archive of 118 signatures assembled during the immediate aftermath of World War II by an American soldier who served as a guard at the Nuremberg Prison while many of the Third Reich's most notorious figures awaited trial, testimony, sentencing, or execution.
This is a fantastic signed 5" x 7" photograph of Wilhelm Frick (12 March 1877 – 16 October 1946), which is in very good condition with minimal wear, with his signature at the bottom. Frick was a high-ranking Nazi official and a key defendant in the Nuremberg Trials (International Military Tribunal) following World War II. As Reich Minister of the Interior from 1933 to 1943, he was responsible for drafting and implementing the legal framework that enabled the National Socialist dictatorship, the persecution of "Non-Aryans", and the establishment of prison camps.
Frick was a longtime supporter of the NSDAP, having taken part in the Beer Hall Putsch of 1923, while being head of the Police in Munich. He would later become a key member of the Reichstag, and the first NSDAP member to hold a ministerial post during the Weimar period. Following the NSDAP takeover, he was instrumental in formulating laws that consolidated the new regime (Gleichschaltung), as well as laws that defined the National Socialist racial policy, most notoriously the Nuremberg Laws. On 30 August 1939, immediately prior to the outbreak of the Second World War, Frick was appointed by Hitler to the six-person Council of Ministers for Defense of the Reich which operated as a war cabinet.
Frick would gradually lose power in the party due to the rise of SS, and was eventually replaced by SS-Reichsführer Heinrich Himmler as Interior Minister, though he remained within the cabinet without any official position. Due to his role within the NSDAP, he was tried and convicted of planning, initiating and waging wars of aggression, war crimes and crimes against humanity. He also was convicted of being one of those responsible for the camps, and was executed 16 October 1946.
The collection was assembled by Daniel Roman, a member of Company D, 26th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division, who was stationed in Nuremberg during the historic trials. According to a recently notarized affidavit signed by his daughter, Roman frequently spoke of his experiences guarding detained Third Reich officials and other individuals connected to the proceedings. He described how identification photographs were posted outside prisoners' cells so guards could verify identities. Over time, some guards began removing the photographs and obtaining autographs directly from the prisoners, often in exchange for cigarettes or small favors. Roman carefully preserved these signed photographs and documents for decades, creating what is today one of the most extraordinary surviving groups of Nuremberg-related autographs ever assembled.
This collection contains signatures from individuals connected not only to the International Military Tribunal, but also to the subsequent Nuremberg Military Tribunals, including the Doctors Trial, Industrialists Trial, Ministries Trial, and other proceedings that sought to bring accountability to those responsible for the crimes of the Third Reich.
Among the most notable names represented within the collection are senior Third Reich leaders, military commanders, industrialists, physicians, and key participants in the trials, including figures such as Hermann Göring, Albert Speer, Karl Dönitz, Baldur von Schirach, Hans Frank, Julius Streicher, Joachim von Ribbentrop, Wilhelm Keitel, Walther Funk, Hjalmar Schacht, Fritz Sauckel, Arthur Seyss-Inquart, Ernst Kaltenbrunner, and numerous defendants from the Doctors and Industrialists Trials. Many of these men stood accused of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and crimes against peace, while others appeared as witnesses, defendants in subsequent proceedings, or individuals interrogated by Allied authorities.
The provenance accompanying these signatures is exceptional. The notarized family affidavit is supported by original wartime documentation confirming Daniel Roman's service in Nuremberg, including:
● Provost Marshal Identification Card identifying Roman as serving with the 26th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division.
● Class B Pass dated April 15, 1946.
● Army Ration Card dated October 20, 1945.
● Permanent Pass dated May 18, 1946.
● Nuremberg transportation pass dated September 8, 1946.
Historical records further confirm that the 26th Infantry Regiment assumed responsibility for the Nuremberg Trial prisoners in April 1946, directly corresponding with Roman's documented service at the prison facility.
Many of the original photographs in the collection retain small thumbtack holes near the upper edge. While such marks would normally be considered condition issues, in this case they provide compelling physical evidence supporting the family's account that these photographs were once displayed outside prison cells within the Nuremberg detention complex itself.
Each autograph in the collection has been carefully examined under magnification and exhibits the characteristics of a genuine period live-ink signature, rather than a printed facsimile or reproduction. The signatures remain exactly as obtained and preserved by Daniel Roman over seventy years ago.
Interest in the Nuremberg Trials remains as strong as ever, recently renewed by the Hollywood motion picture Nuremberg, which has introduced a new audience to the dramatic events, personalities, and moral questions surrounding these historic proceedings. Original artifacts with direct prison provenance have become increasingly difficult to locate, making this collection a rare opportunity for collectors, museums, researchers, and historians alike.
Included with Every Signature
To preserve the extraordinary provenance of this collection, every purchaser will receive:
● A printed copy of the notarized affidavit from Daniel Roman's daughter detailing the history of the collection.
● Printed copies of Daniel Roman's wartime identification cards, passes, and supporting Nuremberg service documents.
● A printed copy of a 1946 photograph showing Roman and fellow American Military Police personnel marching outside the Nuremberg courthouse complex.
A Direct Connection to History
Whether the individual represented was a principal defendant, witness, military leader, physician, industrialist, or other participant in the trials, each autograph from the Daniel Roman Collection offers a tangible connection to the historic effort to hold the leadership of Third Reich Germany accountable before the world. More than a simple signature, it is a surviving artifact from the very prison and courtroom complex where the foundations of modern international criminal law were established.
The signature offered in this listing is the exact example shown and comes from the documented Daniel Roman Nuremberg Collection, acquired directly from the family of the U.S. Army guard who assembled it during the trials themselves.
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