Berlin Wall Escapes1961–1989

27 September 1961 · Window jumps · Bernauer Straße

Anni M.'s rope tied round the sofa

Returning from holiday to find the border houses being cleared, Anni M. roped down the same evening with her valuables; guards found only a rope wound round the sofa.

Black-and-white photo taken over a low wall of breeze blocks topped with barbed wire: a line of canvas-covered lorries stands in a cobbled side street between tall apartment houses, with people and furniture on the pavement; signs in the foreground read 'Ende franz. Sektors' and 'Fin du secteur français'.
Lorries lined up in a side street off Bernauer Straße in early September 1961 to clear furniture from the border houses (CIA booklet photo) Photo: The Central Intelligence Agency. Wikimedia Commons, Public domain

When Anni M. came back from holiday on 27 September 1961, the resettlement of the residents of the border houses had already begun. She decided to escape that same day.

Late in the evening a neighbour heard suspicious noises and alerted the guards. When they broke open the locked door of the flat, they found a rope wrapped round the sofa and hanging out of the window.

Colour photo of a red-brick neo-Gothic church rising behind a long wall of grey concrete blocks; an orange car is parked on the cobbled street in front and 'Die Mauer muss fallen' is painted on the wall.
The Reconciliation Church behind the Wall on Bernauer Straße in January 1978 Photo: Olga Bandelowa. Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0 de

At about 9 p.m. Anni M. had let herself down to the West Berlin pavement, taking her valuables with her.

Sources

Historians and memorials

Facts checked against the sources: September 2026

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Berlin Experiences, “Anni M.'s rope tied round the sofa”, Berlin Wall Escapes, 2026, https://berlinwallescapes.com/escapes/anni-m-rope-round-the-sofa-1961/ (accessed [date]).

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