A Hole in the Iron Curtain, a photo from Gyor-Moson-Sopron, West

Photographer's Note

First hole in the Iron Curtain:

My cyclist friend stands in front of the famous bridge over the Einser creek. The bridge leads from Fertöd (Hungary) to Pamhagen (Austria). The picture is from 1990. The creek marks a national border. The Iron Curtain that used to split Europe in two separate entities passed along this creek.Then in 1989 the courageous Hungarian officials decided without consulting the Soviet Union to tear down the barbed wire and the electrical fences. This gap was quickly discovered by fugitives of the German Democratic Republic. They left their "Trabi" cars behind and made it to Austria by the hundreds. The first hole in the Iron Curtain was forced right here.

The lousy picture is a scan of a paper copy but for historical reasons it means a lot to me, so don't get angry. The bridge and the path no longer exist, they have been replaced by more solid works (see "Map: view").

holmertz has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

rogerl (770) 2013-01-24 15:37

A nice historical capture. No criticism of photo quality here; I myself have thousands of old fim photos that I've scanned, most of far less historical import than this one. I was not familiar with this story at all. Thanks.

tedesse (22124) 2013-01-25 3:15

Hello bicycle tourists!
Interesting, the historical picture. Nice scan, a little lack of focus and pale colors, but worth the photographs show.
I greet and wish you a successful cycling
Tadeusz

holmertz (26980) 2013-01-25 10:42

Hello Dietrich,
Although the technical quality may not be first class, I wouldn't call it a lousy picture. It has a great value as a historical document. If this was really the place where the border was first opened, this hole in the curtain changed the world. When the East Germans got into Austria, the Iron Curtain started cracking and a few months later most of the "Eastern Bloc" had collapsed. For this reason, this is an amazing photo.
Thanks for sharing,
Gert

ACL1978 (5789) 2013-01-26 20:44

Dietrich, this is an amazing historical record, thanks for sharing it. Even given the scan - from paper, no less! - the excitement comes through with the Austrian and Hungarian flags that have been placed over the scene, their brightness impressive. An incredible thing to have been able to witness and document first hand! Thanks for posting this.

Andrew