Philipp Springer: The full-time employees

The full-time employees of the GDR State Security produced and left behind millions of photographs. Only they themselves are rarely seen in them. In this way, the Stasi protected its secret police work. For the first time, this illustrated book takes a look at those who normally stood behind the surveillance camera.

The book is the result of extensive research in the Stasi archives for previously largely unpublished photographs of full-time employees of the GDR State Security. Supplemented by biographical sketches of the people photographed, it provides a special insight into the everyday life of the secret police.The photographs have hardly been used as a historical source to date. The aim is to encourage researchers to take a closer look at the full-time employees. At the same time, the photographic material is informative for anyone interested in photography, contemporary history and GDR history.Translated with DeepL