Overview
- Brief Narrative
- Floral cloth brooch given to Sala Spett by her children, Monius (later Martin) and Rozia, while the family was imprisoned in Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in Germany between May 1943 and April 1945. It was bought on her birthday, May 19, 1943, "as a remembrance by my children, Rozia, 9, and Monius, 14, and my husband, for a slice of bread which meant a day's hunger in Bergen-Belsen." The brooch was handmade by a young girl from Warsaw who was in their camp. The family was from Tarnow, Poland. Sala was an American citizen raised in Poland. Her husband worked at the city's tax office. After the German occupation in September 1939, the family lived in the ghetto and in hiding. In 1943, they were deported to Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. They were liberated while on an evacuation train by American troops on April 13, 1945. The Spett family emigrated to the United States in 1947.
- Date
-
creation:
1943 May
received: 1943 May 19
- Geography
-
creation:
Bergen-Belsen (Concentration camp);
Belsen (Bergen, Celle, Germany)
received: Bergen-Belsen (Concentration camp); Belsen (Bergen, Celle, Germany)
- Credit Line
- United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Martin Spett and family In memory of Arthur and Sala Spett
- Contributor
-
Subject:
Martin Spett
- Biography
-
Monius (later Martin) Spett was born on December 2, 1928, in Tarnow, Poland. In September 1939, the city was occupied by Nazi Germany. In 1940, the German authorities removed Monius and his family from their apartment. During the first massacre of Jews, Monius hid in an attic. The family was able to hide during two more roundups. In May 1943, the family was registered, allegedly to be exchanged for German prisoners of war, because Monius' mother, Sala, was born in the United States. They were taken by train to Krakow and then to Bergen Belsen concentration camp in Germany. They were to be transported to Theresienstadt ghetto labor camp in German occupied Czechoslovakia, but the Allied troops' advance stopped the transport. Monius was liberated by American troops on April 13, 1945. After the war, he spent some time in Belgium and then immigrated to the United States in 1947.
Physical Details
- Classification
-
Jewelry
- Category
-
Pins (Jewelry)
- Object Type
-
Brooches (lcsh)
- Physical Description
- Hand crafted, oval shaped, floral brooch made of painted cloth. In the center is a large red-orange flower, with 3 smaller blue flowers with yellow centers resembling violets on the right, and 1 smaller blue flower with yellow center and three red-orange berries on the left. The flowers are surrounded by a ring of 12 green leaves, There is a pin on the back.
- Dimensions
- overall: Height: 2.750 inches (6.985 cm) | Width: 1.750 inches (4.445 cm)
- Materials
- overall : cloth, paint, metal
Rights & Restrictions
- Conditions on Access
- No restrictions on access
- Conditions on Use
- No restrictions on use
Keywords & Subjects
- Topical Term
- Child concentration camp inmates--Germany--Celle--Biography. Concentration camp inmates--Germany--Celle--Biography. Holocaust survivors--United States--Biography. Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)--Poland--Tarnow--Personal narratives. Jewish families--Poland--Tarnow--Biography. Jewish ghettos--Poland--Tarnow--Biography. Jews--Persecutions--Poland--Tarnow--Biography.
Administrative Notes
- Legal Status
- Permanent Collection
- Provenance
- The brooch was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 1990 by Martin Spett.
- Funding Note
- The cataloging of this artifact has been supported by a grant from the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany.
- Record last modified:
- 2022-07-28 18:11:47
- This page:
- https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn521607
Also in Martin Spett collection
The collection consists of an armband, a brooch, soap, documents, and photographs relating to the experiences of Monek (Martin) Spett and his family in Tarnow, Poland, and Bergen-Belsen concentration camp during the Holocaust, and in Belgium after the Holocaust.
Date: 1939-1946
White armband with a blue embroidered Star of David worn by a Polish Jewish youth
Object
Armband with a blue embroidered Star of David owned by Monek Spett. Monek lived in Tarnow, Poland, with his parents and younger sister Roslyn. His mother was an American citizen raised in Poland. His father worked at the city's tax office. After the German occupation began in September 1939, the family lived in the ghetto and in hiding. In 1943, they were deported to Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. They were liberated while on an evacuation train by American troops on April 13, 1945. The Spett family emigrated to the United States in 1947.
Soap used by a Polish Jewish concentration camp inmate
Object
Soap used by Monek Spett. Monek lived in Tarnow, Poland, with his parents and younger sister Roslyn. His mother was an American citizen raised in Poland. His father worked at the city's tax office. After the German occupation began in September 1939, the family lived in the ghetto and in hiding. In 1943, they were deported to Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. They were liberated whil on an evacuation train by American troops on April 13, 1945. The Spett family emigrated to the United States in 1947.
Martin Spett papers
Document
The papers consist of Holocaust-era documents and photographs relating to the Spett family, originally of Tarnów, Poland. Documents include identification papers, marriage certificate, work registration document, a document confirming that Sala Spett was a prisoner in Bergen-Belsen, and a DP index card issued by the Allied Expeditionary Force to Arthur Spett. Photographs include pre-war and post-war family photographs, and a group of Army Signal Corps photographs likely depicting the liberation of Dachau.
