The three-fingered myth about Panzer

Shortly after Panzer’s arrest, a photo appeared that was supposedly proofing that he had used in Zagreb the Serbian nationalist gesture—considered provocative by Croats, Bosniaks, and Albanians—the "three-finger salute". He did not.

The photo in which Panzer is making the three-finger gesture was in fact taken in Zagreb before a concert of Croatian nationalist and veteran of the Croatian War of Independence (Domovinski rat) Marko "Thompson" Perković. Panzer would not have traveled from Slovakia to attend such a concert if he viewed the world through the eyes of Serbian nationalists or chauvinists.

When Panzer (Michal Petriš) had a son, he posted a photo on Instagram with his daughter and newborn son, with Thompson’s song Son of Mine (Sine moj) playing in the background. There is also his photo (9th) from Zagreb with Thompson’s song King Tomislav (Kralj Tomislav) in the background.

So why did Panzer hold his fingers the way he did? We don’t know exactly, but it is certainly not an exclusively Serbian gesture. The gesture was used even before our era as the "Hand of Sabazios", the Thracian and Phrygian sky father. He became popular in the Roman Empire and was associated with Jupiter/Zeus and Bacchus/Dionysus.

In the newspaper Croatian Nation (Hrvatski narod), one can see that, just like Panzer, Ante Pavelić—the leader of Croatia during the Second World War—also used the three-finger gesture, and he was certainly not a Serbian nationalist.

In German-speaking countries, the gesture is known as the Schwurhand ("swear hand"), and it even appears on the coats of arms of Swiss towns such as Gommiswald and Gempen. Members of the German armed forces also used it during their ceremonial oath of allegiance, the Führereid ("Führer Oath"), including soldiers of the Reichswehr, Wehrmacht and the Waffen-SS.

Three fingers were also used in interwar Czechoslovakia, for example during the mobilization against the army of the Third Reich. After the WWII, a hybrid of the National Socialist salute and the three-finger Schwurhand gained some traction in Germany under the name Kühnengruß.

All of this is far closer to Panzer in terms of blood, faith, and politics than some Serbian gesture whose meaning 99 percent of Slovaks are not even aware of.

Freedom for Panzer! 🇸🇰
Za dom spremni! 🇭🇷

Panzer Supporters | Follow & Share

Support Panzer T-shirts 👕

🇸🇰 The long-standing Slovak clothing brand Streetwear has released special white T-shirts to support Panzer, which you can order through their Instagram profile by simply sending them a direct message. The price of each T-shirt is 15 €, and all profits will be sent to Panzer’s family.

https://www.instagram.com/streetwear.sk

🇩🇪 German comrades from Kampf der Nibelungen, in cooperation with Black Legion, have released a solidarity T-shirt to show support for Panzer. Each T-shirt costs 30 €, with all proceeds going directly to Michal’s family. You can order the solidarity T-shirt through their website via the link provided below.

https://www.kampf-der-nibelungen.com/produkt/solishirt-panzer/

👊🏻 With every T-shirt you purchase, you support Panzer (Michal Petriš) and his family during this difficult time. Now is the perfect opportunity to show our strength and stand together with our brother in need.

----------------------------------------------

If you wish to financially support Panzer and his young family, contributions can be sent to the bank account to which his wife now has access:

💵 LT57 3250 0538 0072 7197

Panzer Supporters | Follow & Share

Tomasz from Pride France shows his support for Panzer ahead of his big fight against BloodAxe in King of the Streets. 🇫🇷⚡🇸🇰

Good luck tonight! 👊🏻

#FreePanzer

Panzer Supporters | Follow & Share

Just a few minutes ago, Tomasz absolutely destroyed his much heavier opponent and took the win.

Congratulations! 🇫🇷⚡🇸🇰

----------------------------------------------

Get your Panzer support T-shirt from Kampf der Nibelungen here.

Panzer Supporters | Follow & Share

Ultras Levski Sofia and Lokomotiv Plovdiv (Gott Mit Uns) are supporting our comrade Panzer.

#FreePanzer 🇧🇬⚡🇸🇰

🔗 The Right voice of Levski Sofia

----------------------------------------------

Get your Panzer support T-shirt from Kampf der Nibelungen here.

Panzer Supporters | Follow & Share

Free Panzer banner was displayed in Sparta Prague’s away sector in Hradec Králové.

#FreePanzer 🇨🇿⚡🇸🇰

----------------------------------------------

Get your Panzer support T-shirt from Kampf der Nibelungen here.

Panzer Supporters | Follow & Share