What does a silversmith have to do with reconciliation?

“I spent up to ten hours a day in my workshop in extreme heat for eight months. I hammered the steel and copper of the cross using the old forging techniques of the 18th century. At the end, I applied three layers of gold leaf, a protective coating for eternity.”

Alan Smith

59 years earlier, in 1945, Alan Smith's father had witnessed the still intact tower cross of the Frauenkirche - before he dropped the fatal bombs on Dresden from a Royal Air Force plane. Not only were important military targets destroyed in Dresden, thousands of civilians were also victims of the attack on the city.

In the exhibition room in the lower church, you can see pictures of how the ruins of the Frauenkirche marked the cityscape for decades before it was rebuilt. On the north side in front of the church you will also find the remains of the old church ruins.

Alan's father's experiences also left their mark on Alan himself: “The awareness of what had actually happened during the war never really left him after the attacks on Dresden. The memories haunted him for the rest of his life, and he became a pacifist. My siblings and I were brought up with such a mindset.” For Alan Smith, one thing is clear: he is determined to fulfill this mission, to create a symbol of reconciliation as a sign of his father's remorse. But how would other war survivors take this message?

“When it became known that I, the son of a bomber pilot, had forged the cross for the church, everyone rushed to hear the story. The initial amazement gave way to a very positive reaction. Even the war veterans from my country who had served with my father patted me on the back approvingly. They told me a lot about the past, about the war. They had kept quiet about it for so many years.”

Since 2004, the tower cross covered in 24-carat gold leaf has adorned the rebuilt Frauenkirche. But we do not want to forget the destruction and devastation that the Second World War caused throughout Europe.

During the reconstruction, construction workers found the surprisingly well-preserved old tower cross, which still stands at Exit B today. Here you can say a prayer for the end of all wars and light a candle in memory of the victims of violence.

Alan Smith died in 2013, but his work on the Frauenkirche tower cross shaped him throughout his life: “I have worked with gold, diamonds and precious stones, made jewelry for royalty and Arab rulers, forged state gifts for the world's highest dignitaries. But this seven-meter-high gold-plated steel cross is the crowning achievement of my career.

It was like making a very complicated jigsaw puzzle in which the past and the future synthesize seamlessly.”