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Berlin WW2 bombing survivor Saturn the alligator dies in Moscow Zoo | |
(32 minutes later) | |
An alligator who survived World War Two in Berlin and was rumoured - wrongly - to have belonged to Nazi leader Adolf Hitler has died in Moscow Zoo. | An alligator who survived World War Two in Berlin and was rumoured - wrongly - to have belonged to Nazi leader Adolf Hitler has died in Moscow Zoo. |
"Yesterday morning, our Mississippi alligator Saturn died of old age. He was about 84 years old - an extremely respectable age," the zoo said. | "Yesterday morning, our Mississippi alligator Saturn died of old age. He was about 84 years old - an extremely respectable age," the zoo said. |
Saturn was gifted to Berlin Zoo in 1936 soon after he was born in the US. He escaped the zoo being bombed in 1943. | Saturn was gifted to Berlin Zoo in 1936 soon after he was born in the US. He escaped the zoo being bombed in 1943. |
British soldiers found him three years later and gave him to the Soviet Union. | British soldiers found him three years later and gave him to the Soviet Union. |
How he spent the intervening years always remained a mystery, but since July 1946 the alligator has been a hit with visitors in Moscow. | How he spent the intervening years always remained a mystery, but since July 1946 the alligator has been a hit with visitors in Moscow. |
"Moscow Zoo has had the honour of keeping Saturn for 74 years," the zoo said in a statement. | "Moscow Zoo has had the honour of keeping Saturn for 74 years," the zoo said in a statement. |
"For us Saturn was an entire era, and that's without the slightest exaggeration... He saw many of us when we were children. We hope that we did not disappoint him." | "For us Saturn was an entire era, and that's without the slightest exaggeration... He saw many of us when we were children. We hope that we did not disappoint him." |
The zoo reported that Saturn knew his keepers, loved being massaged with a brush - and was able to crack steel with his teeth if irritated. | |
Saturn may even have been the world's oldest alligator - it's impossible to say. Another male alligator, Muja who is at Belgrade Zoo in Serbia, is also in his 80s and still alive. | Saturn may even have been the world's oldest alligator - it's impossible to say. Another male alligator, Muja who is at Belgrade Zoo in Serbia, is also in his 80s and still alive. |
But it's doubtful any alligator could compete with Saturn if it came to selling their memoirs. | But it's doubtful any alligator could compete with Saturn if it came to selling their memoirs. |
The most headline grabbing detail is the rumour that Saturn had belonged in Hitler's personal collection, which is untrue. | |
"Almost immediately after the arrival of the animal, the myth appeared that it was supposedly in Hitler's collection, and not in the Berlin zoo," Interfax news agency reports. | |
It is unclear how the rumour started. | |
Moscow Zoo dismissed such reports, noting that animals "do not belong to politics and mustn't be held responsible for human sins". | |
Saturn's death-defying escape in 1943 is unlikely ever to be explained. | Saturn's death-defying escape in 1943 is unlikely ever to be explained. |
Berlin, the capital of Nazi Germany, was subjected to intense Allied bombing before the war ended in 1945. | Berlin, the capital of Nazi Germany, was subjected to intense Allied bombing before the war ended in 1945. |
The so-called Battle of Berlin began in November 1943 and the night of 22-23 November saw extensive damage to areas west of the centre, including the Tiergarten district where the city's zoo is located. | The so-called Battle of Berlin began in November 1943 and the night of 22-23 November saw extensive damage to areas west of the centre, including the Tiergarten district where the city's zoo is located. |
Thousands of people were killed or injured and many of the zoo's animals perished too. | Thousands of people were killed or injured and many of the zoo's animals perished too. |
The zoo's aquarium building took a direct hit. One report said passers-by had seen the corpses of four crocodiles in the street outside, tossed there by the force of the blast. | The zoo's aquarium building took a direct hit. One report said passers-by had seen the corpses of four crocodiles in the street outside, tossed there by the force of the blast. |
Saturn somehow survived and then lived for three years in a city ravaged by war, and a climate unsuited to alligators. | Saturn somehow survived and then lived for three years in a city ravaged by war, and a climate unsuited to alligators. |
It's reported he will now be stuffed and exhibited in Moscow's popular museum of biology named after Charles Darwin. | |
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