TEL AVIV - An anonymous buyer has paid 28,000 British pounds (USD 51,000) at a London auction for a rare signed first edition of Adolph Hitler's "Mein Kampf" (My Struggle).
The book was sold alongside other Hitler memorabilia including a postcard with Hitler's portrait and a printed Thank-You note – both signed by the man himself.
Published in 1923, about 500 first edition copies of the book were printed. It was reported that the rare publication was taken out of the Fuhrer's chambers in 1945 in Berlin following the collapse of Germany.
"Mein Kampf," which Hitler wrote in the 1920s while imprisoned for a botched coup, cannot be sold in Germany, though it is available for purchase in other European Nations, including Israel.
The infamous manifesto has recently become a bestseller in Turkey where, since January, more than 50,000 copies were sold placing it forth on the bestseller list.
Some analysts claim that the low price of less than 5 USD is the reason for its success. Others maintain it was brought about by Israel mistreatment of the Palestinians, the growing criticism of the US's policy in Iraq and the possibility of Turkey joining the European Union.
"We regret that greed motivates some to encourage Nazi sentiment and see this phenomenon as a possible cause for the strengthening of Neo Nazi factions worldwide," a spokeswoman for the Yad Vashem Holocaust Museum in Jerusalem said in response.
