Item number: M389

Year: AD 1919

Material: Bronze

Size: 55.0 x 55.0 mm

Provenance: Stack’s Bowers 2024

This is a bronze commemorative medal crafted by Karl Goetz, serving as a satirical piece and propaganda during the Weimar Republic, specifically marking the establishment of the Bavarian Soviet Republic.

The obverse features three figures in a council assembly, representing a worker (left), a soldier (center), and a farmer (right). Encircling the edge is the inscription “DIE RÄTEREPUBLIK BAIERN 7.-30.IV.1919.”, translating to “The Bavarian Soviet Republic 7th-30th April 1919,” approximately indicating the duration of this regime, which lasted from 6th April to 3rd May AD 1919.

The reverse depicts Gustav Landauer and Lenin embracing, dancing, and kissing. Gustav Landauer was a German anarchist active in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, who played a significant role in the short-lived Bavarian Soviet Republic. Lenin, on the other hand, was the founder of the world’s first communist regime, the Soviet Union, whose victory in Russia inspired left-wing movements across Europe to overthrow their respective rulers. A ribbon at their feet bears the phrase “ES LEBE DIE INTERNATIONALE,” meaning “Long live the International (Workingmen’s Association).” In the background, connected by telegraph wires, are the Frauenkirche of Munich on the left side and Saint Basil’s Cathedral of Moscow on the right side. The upper edge reads “LOS VOM REICH!”, translating to “Away from the (German) Empire/Republic!” This slogan was historically used by federal states in the German region seeking autonomy from the central government and became one of the rallying cries for the establishment of the Bavarian Soviet Republic.

The Bavarian Soviet Republic (German: Räterepublik Baiern) was a short-lived state in Bavaria during the German Revolution of AD 1918-1919. On 7th April AD 1919, left-wing forces, including the Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany (USPD) and the Communist Party, proclaimed its establishment in Munich, aiming to create a socialist government based on workers’, peasants’ and soldiers’ councils. However, this regime lasted only about a month. Amid internal conflicts, it was swiftly suppressed by the German Army and right-wing Freikorps, bringing its brief existence to an end. The commemorative medal serves as a satirical critique of the Bavarian Soviet Republic’s brief existence and underscores its perceived subservience to Soviet Russia, portraying it as a puppet regime controlled by Moscow.

物件編號: M389

年代: 公元 1919 年

材質: 青銅

尺寸: 55.0 x 55.0 mm

來源: SBP錢幣拍賣 2024

這是一枚由卡爾·戈茨(Karl Goetz)製作，用於諷刺及宣傳威瑪共和國時期，巴伐利亞蘇維埃共和國建立的青銅紀念章。

紀念章正面是三個代表在開會，分別是工人(左)，士兵(中)，農民(右)。紀念章的邊緣環繞著「DIE RÄTEREPUBLIK BAIERN 7.-30.IV.1919.」的字樣，亦即「巴伐利亞蘇維埃共和國 公元1919年4月7至30日」，約莫便是該政權存在的時間(公元1919年4月6日至1919年5月3日)。

紀念章背面為古斯塔夫·蘭道爾(Gustav Landauer)和列寧(Lenin)，互相擁抱著，跳舞並接吻。古斯塔夫·蘭道爾是活躍於公元19世紀末至20世紀初的德國無政府主義者，並且在短命的巴伐利亞蘇維埃共和國扮演重要角色。列寧則是世界第一個共產政權蘇聯的創始人，藉由他在俄羅斯的勝利鼓勵歐洲的左翼份子共同推翻各國的統治者。兩人腳邊的彩帶寫著「ES LEBE DIE INTERNATIONALE」，即「國際(工人協會)萬歲」。兩人身後背景的兩側，是以電報線相連接的慕尼黑聖母大教堂以及莫斯科的聖巴希爾大教堂。紀念章的上緣寫著「LOS VOM REICH！」，意即「脫離(德意志)國！」。這個標語在德意志地區歷史上常見於向中央政府爭取自治權力的邦國政府，在這裡成為巴伐利亞蘇維埃共和國成立的口號之一。

巴伐利亞蘇維埃共和國（德語：Räterepublik Baiern），是德國十一月革命期間在巴伐利亞短暫存在的一個國家。公元1919年4月7日，由德國獨立社會民主黨（USPD）和共產黨等左翼勢力在慕尼黑宣布成立，試圖建立以工人、農民和士兵蘇維埃委員會為基礎的社會主義政權。然而，該政權僅維持了約一個月，在內部相互傾軋下，旋即便被德國正規軍和右翼自由軍團聯合鎮壓，結束了其短暫的存在。該紀念章諷刺巴伐利亞蘇維埃政權的短命，其次又指出該政權受到蘇俄的操控，是莫斯科的魁儡。