Brown leather wallet with inlaid floral decorations handcrafted and used in the Łódź Ghetto
Extent and Medium
overall: Height: 4.375 inches (11.113 cm) | Width: 6.625 inches (16.828 cm) | Depth: 0.500 inches (1.27 cm)
Archival History
The wallet was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2004 by Rafal Imbro.
Acquisition
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Rafal Imbro
Funding Note: The cataloging of this artifact has been supported by a grant from the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany.
Scope and Content
Hand decorated wallet crafted and used in the Jewish ghetto in Łódź, Poland. Nazi Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939, and one week later occupied Łódź. They renamed it Litzmannstadt and in February 1940 relocated all the Jews, roughly 100,000 people, into a sealed ghetto. Prewar Łódź was a thriving industrial city and the ghetto continued to be an important manufacturing center. Daily life and social and economic activity in the ghetto was handled by a Council of Jewish Elders who reported to the German authorities. There were continual food shortages and, with the severe overcrowding, death from starvation and disease was common. By September 1942, the Germans had deported the majority of the residents to Chelmno killing center. The ghetto was destroyed in May 1944.
Conditions Governing Access
No restrictions on access
Conditions Governing Reproduction
No restrictions on use
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
Rectangular, well worn, brown leather bifold wallet with a rectangle sewn onto the front flap with a central curvilinear design and a flower in each corner. The design is made from individually inlaid small cardboard pieces covered with brown metal thread, with the initials LJ stamped in the center. One side of the interior has 3 straight edge pockets and 1 curved, 2 compartment coin pocket; the thread dividing the compartments is missing. On the other side are 3 pockets: a straight edge, a curved, and a flap pocket. The flap is missing a female snap; the pocket has a metal male snap.
front, stamped : LJ
Subjects
- Jewish ghettos--Poland--Łódź.
- World War, 1939-1945--Poland--Łódź.
- Leatherwork--Poland--Łódź--20th century.
- Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)--Poland--Łódź.
Genre
- Dress Accessories
- Object