Advanced Search

Learn About The Holocaust

Special Collections

My Saved Research

Login

Register

Help

Skip to main content

Metal teaspoon recovered from Chelmno killing center

Object | Accession Number: 1989.308.11

Search this record's additional resources, such as finding aids, documents, or transcripts.

No results match this search term.
Check spelling and try again.

results are loading

0 results found for “keyward

    Metal teaspoon recovered from Chelmno killing center
    Loading

    Please select from the following options:

    Overview

    Brief Narrative
    Metal teaspoon, likely recovered from a temporary pit furnace at Chelmno killing center in German-occupied Poland, during an archaeological excavation in 1986 and 1987. Killing operations at Chelmno commenced on December 8, 1941. Prisoners were taken to a camp at a manor house (Schlosslager) in the village to undress and relinquish their valuables. They were then loaded into a gas van where they were killed. The van was then driven 2.5 miles northwest of the village to a camp in the Rzuchowski forest (Waldlager), where the bodies were dumped into mass graves. The large number of corpses created a threat of disease and discovery by Allied forces, so the bodies were exhumed and burned in seven primitive pit furnaces. In the fall of 1942, the furnaces were replaced with two open-air crematoria consisting of concrete foundations topped by a grate of train rails. In March 1943, transports to Chelmno stopped, and the manor house and open-air crematoria in the forest were demolished. Deportations to Chelmno resumed from June to July 1944, to facilitate the liquidation of the Łódź ghetto. In this second phase, the entire killing process was carried out in the forest camp (Waldlager), necessitating the construction of new buildings. The Germans abandoned the camp on January 17, 1945, having killed over 172,000 people. The excavations of 1986-87, and later work have identified additional furnaces, crematoria, and mass graves at the site.
    Date
    use:  before 1942 September
    recovered:  1986-1987
    Geography
    recovery: Chelmno (Concentration camp); Chełmno (Koło, Poland)
    Credit Line
    United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Muzeum Okręgowe w Koninie

    Physical Details

    Classification
    Household Utensils
    Category
    Flatware
    Genre/Form
    Spoons.
    Physical Description
    Corroded metal spoon with an oval-shaped bowl and a flat, narrow, metal stem connected to the wide end. The stem is joined to the bowl with a small rounded section that has a raised decorative pattern. The stem is long and straight, with a raised central rib, and widens as it reaches the handle. The handle ends in a wide asymmetric oval with a raised feather pattern along the top edge that extends slightly past the end, creating a small protrusion. The backside of the stem and handle have similar raised designs as the front. Both the front and back of the spoon have patches of silver-colored plating, while a heavy green and brown corrosion cover the exposed surfaces.
    Dimensions
    overall: Height: 0.500 inches (1.27 cm) | Width: 1.125 inches (2.858 cm) | Depth: 5.875 inches (14.923 cm)
    Materials
    overall : metal, ink
    Inscription
    back, stem, handwritten, black ink : CHO 46

    Rights & Restrictions

    Conditions on Access
    No restrictions on access
    Conditions on Use
    No restrictions on use

    Keywords & Subjects

    Administrative Notes

    Provenance
    The teaspoon was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 1989 by the Muzeum Okręgowe w Koninie.
    Record last modified:
    2024-10-03 12:10:03
    This page:
    https:​/​/collections.ushmm.org​/search​/catalog​/irn1073

    Download & Licensing

    In-Person Research

    Contact Us