Adolf Hitler's 'pet' alligator Saturn dies in Moscow Zoo
Saturn the alligator was given to the Soviet Union in 1946 and the myth was born that he was in the collection of the Nazi leader.
Lucia Binding
An alligator believed to have once belonged to Adolf Hitler has died in Moscow Zoo.
The zoo said the reptile, called Saturn, was around 84-years-old when he died on Friday.
Saturn was born in Mississippi in the US and was later gifted to Berlin Zoo, from which he escaped when it was bombed in 1943.
His whereabouts were unknown until 1946, when British soldiers found him and gave him to the Soviet Union.
"Almost immediately, the myth was born that he was allegedly in the collection of Hitler and not in the Berlin Zoo," Moscow Zoo said in a statement.
But it added: "Animals are not involved in war and politics and it is absurd to blame them for human sins."
Moscow Zoo said it had the "honour" of keeping Saturn for 74 years and tried to look after him "with maximum care and caution".
Saturn the alligator was given to the Soviet Union in 1946 and the myth was born that he was in the collection of the Nazi leader.
Lucia Binding
An alligator believed to have once belonged to Adolf Hitler has died in Moscow Zoo.
The zoo said the reptile, called Saturn, was around 84-years-old when he died on Friday.
Saturn was born in Mississippi in the US and was later gifted to Berlin Zoo, from which he escaped when it was bombed in 1943.
His whereabouts were unknown until 1946, when British soldiers found him and gave him to the Soviet Union.
"Almost immediately, the myth was born that he was allegedly in the collection of Hitler and not in the Berlin Zoo," Moscow Zoo said in a statement.
But it added: "Animals are not involved in war and politics and it is absurd to blame them for human sins."
Moscow Zoo said it had the "honour" of keeping Saturn for 74 years and tried to look after him "with maximum care and caution".