Medal for service as a Yugoslav partisan fighter

Identifier
irn2552
Language of Description
English
Alt. Identifiers
  • 1990.118.19
Level of Description
Item
Source
EHRI Partner

Extent and Medium

overall: Height: 3.370 inches (8.56 cm) | Width: 2.000 inches (5.08 cm)

Creator(s)

Biographical History

Jakob Altaras (1918-2001) was born in Split, Croatia and was the youngest of six sons of Leon Altaras. His medical studies in Zagreb were interrupted by the war, and he joined the Partisan resistance movement in Croatia. He saved Torah portions and other sacred objects from the Split Synagogue when it was set on fire; he smuggled a group of 33 Jewish children from Croatia to safety in Villa Emma near Modena, Italy; he illegally entered the Rab (Arbe) concentration camp to smuggled out photographs which were later used by the Commission for War Crimes in Yugoslavia; and he served as a surgeon in hospitals for Jewish partisans in Bari, Italy. After the war, he completed his medical studies and practiced and taught medicine in Zagreb. Altaras was politically persecuted and forced to leave Croatia in 1964 when he began investigating the 1945 death of his brother Silvio Altaras at the hands of the communist regime of Yugoslavia. He worked in Zurich, Switzerland for two years before settling in Giessen, Germany, where he served as the president of the Jewish Community of Giessen.

Archival History

The medal was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 1990 by the Jewish Community in Giessen.

Acquisition

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of the Jewish Community of Giessen

Scope and Content

Medals for service in the partisan war and for other military actions for Tito's army.

Conditions Governing Access

No restrictions on access

Conditions Governing Reproduction

No restrictions on use

Genre

This description is derived directly from structured data provided to EHRI by a partner institution. This collection holding institution considers this description as an accurate reflection of the archival holdings to which it refers at the moment of data transfer.