Little green man unites nation

Chunky outline and wide-brimmed hat instantly recognisable.

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Germany readies to mark 35 years since the Berlin Wall fell, one symbol of the former communist East has become an icon of reunification, seen by millions every time they cross a street.

East Germany's Ampelmann, or pedestrian "traffic light man", is now instantly recognisable thanks to his chunky outline and wide-brimmed hat.

He almost disappeared along with East Germany in the years after the Wall fell on 9 November, 1989, when many other symbols of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) were swept away.

Its polluting Trabant cars were soon headed for the scrapheap, threadbare state-run shops gave way to Western brands and grey prefabricated tower blocks got new licks of paint.

The Ampelmann almost went the same way, said Markus Heckhausen, a businessman in his 60s from the western German city of Tuebingen.