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This cloth crest was worn by a German athlete at the 1936 Olympic Games held in Berlin. It was the first mass display of Nazi imagery within world competition. The unknown wearer of this particular badge served in the German armed forces during the Second World War and saw action with the Afrika Korps. He was presumably killed or captured in the North African campaign as the badge has entered the Enham Alamein archives as a British soldiers souvenir.

To me this object speaks of the human desire to commemorate our individual history through the retention of personal items. The original owner took this piece of cloth with him to another continent as a reminder of a glorious moment in his life even though he risked its loss or damage. This is again mirrored by a British soldier keeping it as a souvenir of his role in the defence of North Africa.