- Summary
- Videotape testimony of Vera K., a twin, who was born in Tornala, Czechoslovakia. She recalls their affluence; hiding with non-Jews and in the forest for two years following the German occupation; arrest and incarceration in Sered ̕in 1943 with her parents and sister; transport to Birkenau; separation from her parents (she never saw her father again); selection for twin experiments by Josef Mengele; frequently seeking and finding her mother; witnessing women giving birth and the immediate murder of the babies; living in the Czech family camp, women's camp, Zigeunerlager (Gypsy Lager), and the camp for human medical subjects; sharing food with her sister; and escaping a mass shooting by hiding under corpses. Mrs. K. describes fleeing with her mother and sister during the evacuation of Birkenau; returning to Birkenau; a mass shooting; disappearance of the Germans; walking to Auschwitz; a male prisoner who cared for them (he later became her stepfather); moving to Stropkov; recuperating in an Irish sanitorium; attending school in London; and emigration to Israel in 1953. She discusses her state of mind in Birkenau; the importance of being with her sister and mother; and the impact of these experiences on her and her sister's lives including nightmares and depression.
- Author/Creator
- K., Vera.
- Published
- Ramat Aviv, Israel : Beth Hatefutsoth, Nahum Goldman Museum of the Jewish Diaspora, 1985
- Interview Date
- January 18, 1985.
- Locale
- Czechoslovakia
Stropkov (Slovakia)
Ireland
London (England)
Šafárikovo (Slovakia)
- Cite As
- Vera K. Holocaust Testimony (HVT-1090). Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocaust Testimonies, Yale University Library.
- Other Authors/Editors
- Mahler, Shlomit, interviewer.
Tarsi, Anita, interviewer.
- Notes
-
This testimony is in Hebrew.