Translation of the article:
(hopefully, my knowledge of French is good enough not to make big errors)
History of the Sherman of Bastogne
This tank, named "Barracuda" was part of the US 11th Armored Division; it was hit by a German shell on December 30, 1944 in the Bastogne area.
It was removed from the battlefield, restored and placed on a base (pedestal?) at McAuliffe Square (famous for his "NUTS" reply to the Germans asking for the surrender of the encircled city).
After several years, the tank needed some serious (face)lifting; for that, the Army removed it from its base to transport it to the Rocourt Arsenal (Liège).
It was returned to us on MAy 23, 2007, rejuvenated, restored to take its place on a new base, next to the statue of the General mentioned previously here and at the foot of the "Freedom Route" marker.
On this occasion, the group "COBRA" (The Bastogne Remember Americans Group) and the city of Bastogne organise an exposition with the unique thme "the Sherman in all its ways" (paintings, models, pictures, children's drawings, etc).
Monique, my wife (well, not mine, the wife of the one writing this article, haha - Erwin) - artist/painter - painted a work you see here below which had some success.
Explanation: the young woman on top of the tank expresses the joy of the population for the return of "their" tank.
Why is the tank being pulled by the wild boars? Because, for our province (Luxembourg) the wild boar represents the strength, its motto "une ardeur d'avance" (sorry, don't know the right English for this one - Erwin) which is not a sentence in written in vain.
And besides ...... this tank has no engine!!!
So here is the humor in this painting.
Hope it is understandable.
Erwin