By Laura Fleischmann
11/08/2026 - 12:23 GMT+2
The water level in the Danube has never been this low. The low water level is exposing what lay hidden on the riverbed for decades, including a Wehrmacht motorcycle of the DKW NZ 350-1 type from the Second World War. DKW is short for "Dampfkraftwagen", a former German car and motorcycle brand from the Saxon motor city of Zschopau that was later taken over by Auto Union.
The motorcycle was found on the riverbed in the centre of Hungary's capital Budapest, level with the Hungarian Parliament building. For staff at the local Institute and Museum of Military History it is a real once-in-a-century discovery. According to the institute, the vehicle is almost completely intact. It was effectively preserved in the Danube's mud.
The motorcycle found is a model developed specifically for wartime use and produced from 1944 onwards. It was powered by a single-cylinder two-stroke engine delivering 11.5 hp. Thanks to their robustness and reliability, these so-called Kräder, or military motorcycles, were popular with the troops. One of the key identifying features of the DKW 350-1 is the metal side pannier, also found on the machine recovered from the Danube.
