Overview
- Brief Narrative
- Box containing small Mickey Mouse figure framed by an artificial flower garland that belonged to Pierre Seel, who at age 18 was arrested on May 3, 1941, in Mulhouse in German occupied France for homosexuality. His mother created the boxed setting with the toy as a memorial device to remember and protect her son. The flower garland was originally part of her wedding veil. Pierre was brutally tortured for 10 days by the Gestapo and then sent to Schirmeck-Vorbruck, a re-education camp near Natzwiller Struthof concentration camp in Alsace. The torture and abuse continued and he was a forced laborer on construction projects. After 6 months, Pierre was released and conscripted into the German Army. He fought on the Eastern front in the Soviet Union and was wounded in combat in Yugoslavia. After the war ended in May 1945, he returned to Mulhouse.
- Date
-
creation:
approximately 1941 May
use: 1941 May-1945 May
- Geography
-
creation:
Mulhouse (France)
use: Mulhouse (France)
- Credit Line
- United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Pierre Seel
- Contributor
-
Subject:
Pierre Seel
Physical Details
- Classification
-
Decorative Arts
- Category
-
Souvenirs
- Object Type
-
Souvenirs (aat)
- Physical Description
- a: Mickey mouse toy
b: small piece of toy
c: flower garland
d: bud detached from garland
e: wooden box
f: cardboard box
g: cardboard box lid
h-j: cotton batting
k: flower petal
l: flower petal - Dimensions
- a: Height: 2.953 inches (7.501 cm) | Width: 1.181 inches (3 cm)
c: Height: 3.937 inches (10 cm) | Width: 2.756 inches (7 cm)
e: Height: 4.055 inches (10.3 cm) | Width: 2.205 inches (5.601 cm) | Depth: 0.709 inches (1.801 cm)
f: Height: 5.197 inches (13.2 cm) | Width: 3.150 inches (8.001 cm) | Depth: 1.378 inches (3.5 cm)
g: Height: 5.197 inches (13.2 cm) | Width: 3.150 inches (8.001 cm) | Depth: 0.709 inches (1.801 cm) - Materials
- : wood
c : wax, metal
a : cloth
Rights & Restrictions
- Conditions on Access
- No restrictions on access
- Conditions on Use
- No restrictions on use
Keywords & Subjects
- Topical Term
- Concentration camp inmates--France--Schirmeck--Biography. Gay men--France--Biography. Gays--Nazi persecution--France--Mulhouse--Biography. Political prisoners--France--Schirmeck--Biography. Soldiers--Germany--Biography. World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, French.
- Geographic Name
- France--History--German occupation, 1940-1945.
Administrative Notes
- Legal Status
- Permanent Collection
- Provenance
- The memento was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2015 by Pierre Seel.
- Record last modified:
- 2022-07-28 21:51:15
- This page:
- https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn519804
Download & Licensing
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