Priebing: Cellar door, riveted and repainted

Six armies were involved in the liberation of Austria in spring 1945. Alongside the Soviet Union, USA, Britain and France, there were also Yugoslav and Bulgarian troops, and it was these who defeated the last Nazi units present in Southern Austria. However, these armies only stayed for a short while. In August 1945 the British took over the administration of Styria, Carinthia and East Tyrol. At this point some towns had got to know four Allied powers: in Leibnitz, for example, Bulgarians were followed by Yugoslav, Soviet and finally British troops.

In 1939 Franz and Theresia Ploder from Priebing had a cellar door made. Rivets were applied to form their initials, the date and two Nazi Reichsadler (imperial eagles) with swastikas.

In 1945, just before the end of the war, they concealed the pattern by adding more rivets. Although the door could be seen from the road, their deception stayed unnoticed. The door was finally replaced in 2018.