A Huber brand watch that belonged to Nazi leader Adolf Hitler has been sold at auction for about one million euros. The object was acquired by an anonymous buyer.

The watch in question has a swastika and Hitler's initials engraved on it, and was described by the auctioneer as a "World War II relic of historic proportions."

The watch was reportedly given to Hitler in April 1933 on the occasion of his 44th birthday, when he was made alongside former Chancellor Paul von Hindenburg an honorary citizen of Bavaria. It was commissioned by the Nazi Party and made and engraved by the German watchmaker Andreas Huber in Munich.

The auction, held by Alexander Historical Auctions in Maryland in the United States, was criticized by leaders of the Jewish community. In an open letter signed by 34 Jewish leaders, the sale was described as "abominable.

"This auction, unconsciously or not, does two things: one is to encourage those who idealize what the Nazi party stood for. The other is to offer buyers the possibility of contenting someone with an item belonging to a genocidal murderer," said Rabbi Menachem Margolin, president of the Brussels-based European Jewish Association (EJA), quoted by the Daily News.

The auction house, however, said that the sale is aimed at preserving history. "Whether history is good or bad, it should be preserved," said Alexander Historical Auctions vice president Mindy Greenstein. "If someone destroys history, there is no proof that it happened."