Postmarked postcard of the Eternal Jew for an antisemitic exhibit

Promotional postcard with a caricature of the Eternal Jew, for a Nazi sponsored antisemitic traveling exhibition of the same name in Munich, Germany, in November 1937. The “Eternal Jew” (also called the Wandering Jew) was a Jewish man (in some versions named Ahasuerus or Cartaphilus) who taunted Jesus on his way to be crucified. In response, Jesus said, “I stand and rest, but you will go on,” dooming him to live and wander the Earth until the end of the world or the second coming of Christ. The origin of the story is uncertain, although parts were possibly inspired by biblical passages. From November 8, 1937, to January 31, 1938, the Nazis held the “Eternal Jew” in the Library of the German Museum in Munich. The exhibit featured images and artifacts designed to instill fear and incite enmity against Jews by presenting antisemitic images, caricatures, myths, and conspiracy theories as truthful. The poster features an image that embodies all of these antisemitic themes in a caricatured Jewish man with large, curved nose, thick eyebrows, and hooded eyes. He is looking longingly at the money in his hand, while holding a whip in his opposite hand. A three-dimensional map of the Soviet Union, easily identified by the distinct red hammer and sickle, is secured under his left arm. After the exhibit finished in Munich, it was shown in Vienna, Austria, Berlin, Bremen, Dresden, and Magdeburg, until the summer of 1939. "The Eternal Jew" was one of the most popular propaganda exhibitions of the Nazi regime, attracting more than 1.3 million visitors. The postcard is one of more than 900 items in the Katz Ehrenthal Collection of antisemitic artifacts and visual materials.