Trafika Europe 14 - Italian Piazza

The Animal Gazer

ON THE NIGHT of August 24 and 25, 1914, shortly after midnight, when the citizens of Antwerp were already in bed or about to turn in, a steady, incessant humming erupted from the sky. Rembrandt stuck his head out the window and had the impression that the air itsel f was vibrating. Looking up he could see in the incredibly luminous sky the outl ine of a Zeppel in slowly approaching, headed toward the center of the city. The machine looked powerful , threatening, but also a l ittle comical . It was shaped l ike an enormous cigar. Al l of a sudden something was shot from the bel ly of the Zeppel in that resembled a shiny sparkler. A second later an explosion made the rooftops shake, the chimneys crumble, and the wal ls crack. The f irst bomb fel l on Beurstraat. Next to be hit were Albert von Barystraat, Schermersstraat, Justitiestraat, the Waag, the publ ic weigh station, the Falconplein barracks. Ten explosions in a row that blazed the passage of the Zeppel in over the city. The bombs— adorned, according to reports, by an engraving of the face of Wi lhelm I I—opened holes in the paved and cobblestoned streets that were as deep as craters. Gas pipes exploded and water pipes broke. By the end the casualty count reached twelve dead and more than f i fty wounded. On the next night the citizens of Antwerp remained awake in their houses, making do with candlel ight, going to bed ful ly clothed, or sitting in the dark

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