Barbed wire from a German POW camp

Piece of barbed wire from the site of a German prisoner of war camp in Rzhev, Soviet Union (now Russia). The camp operated from 1941-1943 and this piece was excavated in 2014 by the U.S.-Russia Joint Commission on POW/MIAs. Rzhev was located on the Volga River along the Moscow-Riga railway. Nazi Germany launched a surprise attack on its former ally, the Soviet Union, in June 1941. Rzhev, a city of about 50,000, was taken by the Germans in October. It was the site of several fierce battles, from the Soviet offensive in January 8, 1942, until March 22, 1943, during the German retreat from Russia. Soviet losses are estimated at 500,000 - 1,000,000. No restrictions on access