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Small silver curtain ring worn as a wedding ring by an Austrian Jewish refugee

Object | Accession Number: 2010.486.3
2010.486.3 front Small silver curtain ring worn as a wedding ring by an Austrian Jewish refugee Click to enlarge 2010.486.3 back Small silver curtain ring worn as a wedding ring by an Austrian Jewish refugee Click to enlarge

Small silver curtain ring worn as a wedding ring by 27 year old Helena Koves in London, England, where she married Victor Koves on December 30, 1938. Helena was living in Vienna when it was annexed by Nazi Germany in March 1938. Victor had already left Vienna and settled in London and they decided that Helena should join him. In the early 1940s, they left for Shanghai by way of Canada, but were able to obtain US visas in Canada and emigrated to New York.

Date
use:  1938 December 30
Geography
use: London (England)
Classification
Tools and Equipment
Category
Fasteners
Object Type
Curtain rings (aat)
Credit Line
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of the family of Lewis Victor Koves and Helena Koves

About This Object

Physical Description
Thin, circular, silver colored adjustable metal curtain ring; the ends do not join. There is a folded, white piece of paper with handwritten text looped around the ring and partially covered with clear adhesive tape.
Dimensions
overall: Height: 0.875 inches (2.223 cm) | Width: 2.000 inches (5.08 cm) | Depth: 0.200 inches (0.508 cm)
Materials
overall : metal, paper, pressure-sensitive tape, ink
Inscription
paper, around ring, handwritten, black ink : 30. XII. 1938 L[?]y
Contributor
Subject: Helena Koves
Biography
Helena (Helly) Fuchs was born on October 4, 1911. She lived in Vienna, Austria, with her parents and worked as a senior cashier in a large retail store. In March 1938, the Anschluss, or the annexation of Austria to Nazi Germany, occurred. Jews were disenfranchised and no longer permitted to take part in many activities and professions. Shortly after the Anschluss, Helena’s fiancé, Victor Koves, arranged for her to join him in London, England. Victor was born on June 11, 1913, and had worked with Helena before he emigrated to London. Victor worked various jobs and Helena worked as a housekeeper in London. They married on December 30, 1938. Victor and Helena avoided internment as enemy aliens because they held visas for Shanghai; one of Victor’s employers possibly vouched for them. In the early 1940s when submarines were very active, Victor and Helena decided to leave for Shanghai via Canada. A consular official in Canada arranged for them to get US visas and they emigrated to New York. Helena passed away on April 12, 2000. (Lewis) Victor passed away on April 19, 2010.

Keywords and Subjects

Administrative History

Legal Status
Permanent Collection
Provenance
The ring was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2010 by Pam Brighton Cavar, the great-niece of Helena and Lewis Victor Koves.
Funding Note
The cataloging of this artifact has been supported by a grant from the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany.

Rights and Restrictions

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

 
Record last modified: 2022-06-13 13:41:18
This page: https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn43406

Also in This Collection

Stuffed toy monkey used to smuggle money by Austrian Jewish woman

Stuffed toy monkey used to smuggle money by Austrian Jewish woman

Object

Stuffed toy monkey used by 26 year old Helena Fuchs to smuggle money from Vienna, Austria, to England in 1938. Since anti-Jewish laws restricted the amount of money Jews could take out of the country, Helena sewed money inside the monkey. Helena was living in Vienna when it was annexed by Nazi Germany in March 1938. Her fiance, Victor Koves, had already left Vienna and settled in London, England. They decided that Helena should join him and they married in London on December 30, 1938. In the early 1940s, they left for Shanghai by way of Canada, but they were able to obtain US visas in Canada and emigrated to New York.

Lewis Victor Koves and Helena Koves collection

Document

Contains a photograph of Lewis and Helena Koves (donor’s great uncle and aunt) who fled Nazi occupied Austria for England in 1939; taken some time after they fled Austria.

View All 3 Items in the Collection