Guest Posted 9 July , 2021 Share Posted 9 July , 2021 I have a little plaque/desk ornament that I inherited from a family member who collected war memorabilia and I'm trying to find out more about this piece. It's a wooden plaque displaying a side view of a zeppelin, supposedly made from wreckage of a zeppelin that was shot down. This also bears a small plaque which bears the following inscription, which is a little difficult to make out (I've also included a photo of the whole plaque: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin Michelle Young Posted 9 July , 2021 Admin Share Posted 9 July , 2021 Welcome to the forum. I have found this online http://www.iancastlezeppelin.co.uk/56-aug-1918/4594390719 Michelle Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mancpal Posted 9 July , 2021 Share Posted 9 July , 2021 If the airship fell into the sea 8 miles from the coast I wonder how the recovered aluminium was salvaged to make the plaque? Simon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PRC Posted 9 July , 2021 Share Posted 9 July , 2021 6 hours ago, Michelle Young said: Welcome to the forum. I have found this online http://www.iancastlezeppelin.co.uk/56-aug-1918/4594390719 The shooting down of a Zeppelin off the east-coast on that link would tie in datewise - but the article refers to the L70. Now I know my eyesight is bad, but doesn't look like the plaque refers to an L70 - looks more like L50. The L50 was lost in October 1917 after a raid on England, but not in the North Sea. The fate of the main part of the craft is unknown, but it appears the Captain of the craft crashed the gondola into a mountain in order for the crew to escape. I'm assuming not too much should be read into the stylisation of the Zeppelin - if it was piece of work done at the time then the maker would have little in the way of detailed drawings and images to go on. 15 minutes ago, mancpal said: If the airship fell into the sea 8 miles from the coast I wonder how the recovered aluminium was salvaged to make the plaque? The British Airship NS11 was lost in a similar area in July 1919. Despite the extreme heat generated by the explosion, boats going out to the area were still able to recover the lightweight aluminum mesh and parts of the infrastructure floating on the sea. Other parts washed ashore up and down the Norfolk coast over the next few days. Not saying that was how the metal was recovered in the case of this Zeppelin, just an example of how it might have happened. Cheers, Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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