Overview
- Brief Narrative
- Small tablecloth embroidered by Izi Greif (née Korn) while she was in high school or shortly thereafter. Izi grew up in Piatra Neamț, Romania with her younger brother Hary, and their parents Lisa and Solomon Korn. Izi was in high school when Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939, starting World War II. Originally, Romania chose to stay neutral in the war. However, in September 1940, a coalition government came to power led by General Ion Antonescu and the Iron Guard, a nationalistic party which promoted violent antisemitism. Following this change in government, Romania officially joined the Axis alliance, and restrictions against Jews began to intensify. The new Romanian government quickly passed regulations forbidding Jews from public education, and Izi was kicked out of school. The Iron Guard and local authorities in Piatra Neamt also terrorized Jews by confiscating the Jewish cemetery, torturing people into giving up their wealth and property, and restricting their movement around town. In August 1944, opposition politicians overthrew Antonescu and signed an armistice with the Soviet Union. Romanian troops then started working with the Allies. Following the ousting of the antisemitic Romanian government and the German military, Izi reenrolled in high school. She graduated in 1945, and moved to Bucharest to study textile engineering. While there she met electro-mechanical engineering student Ignacy Greif, and they married in 1948. In 1973, Izi and Ignacy immigrated to the United States with their daughter, and settled in San Francisco.
- Date
-
creation:
1938-1948
- Geography
-
creation:
Piatra Neamt (Romania)
- Credit Line
- United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Claudia Greif and Vladimir Brandwajn
- Contributor
-
Subject:
Izi Greif
- Biography
-
Izi Greif (née Korn, 1923-2008) was born in Romancauti, Romania (now Romankivt︠s︡i, Ukraine), but raised in Piatra Neamț, Romania by her parents, Lisa (née Koifman) and Solomon Korn. Lisa was from Romancauti, while Solomon was from Buzău, Romania. Izi had one younger brother, Hary (1927-2010).
Izi was in high school when Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939, starting World War II. Originally, Romania chose to stay neutral in the war, even though Romanian authorities already pursued a policy of harsh, persecutory antisemitism against Jews. In September 1940, a coalition government came to power led by General Ion Antonescu and the Iron Guard, a nationalistic party which promoted violent antisemitism. This period of rule is often known as the National Legionary State, and the party members as Legionnaires. Following this change in government, Romania officially joined the Axis alliance, and restrictions against Jews began to intensify. The new Romanian government quickly passed regulations forbidding Jews from public education, and Izi was kicked out of school.
In Piatra Neamț the Legionnaires, with the assistance of the local authorities, terrorized the Jewish population. They confiscated the Jewish cemetery, and tortured wealthy Jews into giving them large sums of money and property. Jews who did not have money were forced to give away their merchandise and treasured family items. This abuse was similar to what the Legionnaires were inflicting on Jews all across Romania. In summer 1941, Izi and all other Romanian Jews were ordered to start wearing the yellow Star of David badge, and they were prohibited from moving around town outside of a few designated hours each day. The German army also forced Jews throughout the country to donate blankets and winter clothes to German soldiers.
In August 1944, as Soviet troops were gaining ground in Romania, opposition politicians overthrew Antonescu and signed an armistice with the Soviet Union. Romanian troops then started working with the Allies, fighting alongside Soviet troops through Hungary and into Germany. Izi, her brother, and their parents all survived the Holocaust. Following the ousting of the antisemitic Romanian government and the German military, Izi returned to high school and graduated in 1945. She then moved to Bucharest to study textile engineering. In Bucharest, Izi met Ignacy Greif, a fellow survivor and electro-mechanical engineering student. Izi and Ignacy married in 1948, the same year that Ignacy graduated with his engineering degree. Izi earned her degree in 1952. The couple both worked as engineers in Bucharest, and had one daughter, Claudia. In 1968, the family applied at the Romanian authority to immigrate to the United States, and they received their exit visas in 1973. The three of them settled in San Francisco.
Physical Details
- Classification
-
Furnishings and Furniture
- Category
-
Household linens
- Object Type
-
Tablecloths (lcsh)
- Genre/Form
- Table settings & decorations.
- Physical Description
- Small, pink, lightweight, square tablecloth with a brown border resembling a fence, and a butterfly and floral design. An orange butterfly is embroidered in the center with four sets of blue bell-shaped flowers with green stems around it. Coming out of the brown border are eight sets of simple blue flowers with green stems interspersed with blue, green, orange, purple, and red butterflies. Each butterfly is sewn with a combination of stem and satin stich. The stems, leaves, and petals of the bell-shaped flowers are all satin stitched. The exterior flowers are sewn with a combination of couching, stem, and satin stitch. The border is sewn with variegated brown thread. The edge is lined with short satin stitch with small knots spaced evenly throughout. Above that are thin vertical lines in stem stitch topped with a scalloped border in short satin stitch. There is light staining in several places overall.
- Dimensions
- overall: Height: 29.000 inches (73.66 cm) | Width: 27.250 inches (69.215 cm)
- Materials
- overall : cloth, thread
Rights & Restrictions
- Conditions on Access
- No restrictions on access
- Conditions on Use
- No restrictions on use
Keywords & Subjects
- Topical Term
- Antisemitism--Romania. Educational change--Romania. Engineers. Fascism--Romania. Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)--Romania--Biography. Jewish families--Romania--Piatra Neamț. Tablecloths. World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, Romanian.
- Geographic Name
- Bucharest (Romania) Piatra Neamț (Romania)
- Personal Name
- Antonescu, Ion, 1882-1946.
- Corporate Name
- Garda de Fier
Administrative Notes
- Legal Status
- Permanent Collection
- Provenance
- The tablecloth was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2016 by Claudia Greif, the granddaughter of Klara Stempler Greif.
- Record last modified:
- 2024-10-03 12:50:51
- This page:
- http://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn560513
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Also in Klara Stempler Greif family collection
The collection consists of booties, silverware, tablecloths, a table runner, documents, and photographs relating to the experiences of Klara Stempler Greif and her sons Maximilian and Ignatz, and Ignatz’s wife, Izi, before and during the Holocaust in Romania, and after the Holocaust in Romania and the United States.
Date: 1900-2009
Greif family papers
Document
The collection documents the pre-war and post-war lives of Ignacy and Izi Greif (née Korn) of Romania. Included are pre-war photographs of the Greif and Korn families in Romania; post-war documents relating to Ignacy and Izi’s engineering education and careers in Romania; naturalization certificates of Ignacy and Izi; and writings of Ignacy’s relative Yehuda Hersch Stempler. Photographs include depictions of Ignacy’s high school classmates in Romania and Izi’s brother Hari.
Cross-stitch table runner from a Jewish woman’s dowry
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Embroidered tablecloth with blue floral design owned by a Jewish woman
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Table knife owned by a Romanian Jewish family
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Berndorf table knife owned by Izi Greif’s (née Korn) family. Izi was born in Romancauti, Romania (now Romankivt︠s︡i, Ukraine), but grew up in Piatra Neamț, Romania with her younger brother Hary, and their parents Lisa and Solomon Korn. Izi was in high school when Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939, starting World War II. Originally, Romania chose to stay neutral in the war. However, in September 1940, a coalition government came to power led by General Ion Antonescu and the Iron Guard, a nationalistic party which promoted violent antisemitism. Following this change in government, Romania officially joined the Axis alliance, and restrictions against Jews began to intensify. The new Romanian government quickly passed regulations forbidding Jews from public education, and Izi was kicked out of school. The Iron Guard and local authorities in Piatra Neamt also terrorized Jews by confiscating the Jewish cemetery, torturing people into giving up their wealth and property, and restricting their movement around town. In August 1944, opposition politicians overthrew Antonescu and signed an armistice with the Soviet Union. Romanian troops then started working with the Allies. Following the ousting of the antisemitic Romanian government and the German military, Izi reenrolled in high school. She graduated in 1945, and moved to Bucharest to study textile engineering. While there she met electro-mechanical engineering student, Ignacy Greif, and they married in 1948. In 1973, Izi and Ignacy immigrated to the United States with their daughter, and settled in San Francisco.
Butter knife owned by a Romanian Jewish family
Object
Butter knife owned by Izi Greif’s (née Korn) family. Izi was born in Romancauti, Romania (now Romankivt︠s︡i, Ukraine), but grew up in Piatra Neamț, Romania with her younger brother Hary, and their parents Lisa and Solomon Korn. Izi was in high school when Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939, starting World War II. Originally, Romania chose to stay neutral in the war. However, in September 1940, a coalition government came to power led by General Ion Antonescu and the Iron Guard, a nationalistic party which promoted violent antisemitism. Following this change in government, Romania officially joined the Axis alliance, and restrictions against Jews began to intensify. The new Romanian government quickly passed regulations forbidding Jews from public education, and Izi was kicked out of school. The Iron Guard and local authorities in Piatra Neamt also terrorized Jews by confiscating the Jewish cemetery, torturing people into giving up their wealth and property, and restricting their movement around town. In August 1944, opposition politicians overthrew Antonescu and signed an armistice with the Soviet Union. Romanian troops then started working with the Allies. Following the ousting of the antisemitic Romanian government and the German military, Izi reenrolled in high school. She graduated in 1945, and moved to Bucharest to study textile engineering. While there she met electro-mechanical engineering student Ignacy Greif, and they married in 1948. In 1973, Izi and Ignacy immigrated to the United States with their daughter, and settled in San Francisco.
Fork owned by a Romanian Jewish family
Object
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Tea infuser spoon owned by a Romanian Jewish family
Object
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Embroidered yellow tablecloth with a floral design owned by a Romanian Jewish woman
Object
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Embroidered pink tablecloth with a nautical design owned by a Romanian Jewish woman
Object
Small tablecloth embroidered by Izi Greif (née Korn) while she was in high school or shortly thereafter. Izi grew up in Piatra Neamț, Romania with her younger brother Hary, and their parents Lisa and Solomon Korn. Izi was in high school when Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939, starting World War II. Originally, Romania chose to stay neutral in the war. However, in September 1940, a coalition government came to power led by General Ion Antonescu and the Iron Guard, a nationalistic party which promoted violent antisemitism. Following this change in government, Romania officially joined the Axis alliance, and restrictions against Jews began to intensify. The new Romanian government quickly passed regulations forbidding Jews from public education, and Izi was kicked out of school. The Iron Guard and local authorities in Piatra Neamt also terrorized Jews by confiscating the Jewish cemetery, torturing people into giving up their wealth and property, and restricting their movement around town. In August 1944, opposition politicians overthrew Antonescu and signed an armistice with the Soviet Union. Romanian troops then started working with the Allies. Following the ousting of the antisemitic Romanian government and the German military, Izi reenrolled in high school. She graduated in 1945, and moved to Bucharest to study textile engineering. While there she met electro-mechanical engineering student Ignacy Greif, and they married in 1948. In 1973, Izi and Ignacy immigrated to the United States with their daughter, and settled in San Francisco.
Embroidered tablecloth with a floral design owned by a Romanian Jewish woman
Object
Large tablecloth embroidered by Izi Greif (née Korn) while she was in high school or shortly thereafter. Izi grew up in Piatra Neamț, Romania with her younger brother Hary, and their parents Lisa and Solomon Korn. Izi was in high school when Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939, starting World War II. Originally, Romania chose to stay neutral in the war. However, in September 1940, a coalition government came to power led by General Ion Antonescu and the Iron Guard, a nationalistic party which promoted violent antisemitism. Following this change in government, Romania officially joined the Axis alliance, and restrictions against Jews began to intensify. The new Romanian government quickly passed regulations forbidding Jews from public education, and Izi was kicked out of school. The Iron Guard and local authorities in Piatra Neamt also terrorized Jews by confiscating the Jewish cemetery, torturing people into giving up their wealth and property, and restricting their movement around town. In August 1944, opposition politicians overthrew Antonescu and signed an armistice with the Soviet Union. Romanian troops then started working with the Allies. Following the ousting of the antisemitic Romanian government and the German military, Izi reenrolled in high school. She graduated in 1945, and moved to Bucharest to study textile engineering. While there she met electro-mechanical engineering student Ignacy Greif, and they married in 1948. In 1973, Izi and Ignacy immigrated to the United States with their daughter, and settled in San Francisco.
Hand-knit baby bootie made by a Romanian Jewish woman
Object
Hand-knit baby bootie made by Izi Greif shortly after her marriage to Ignacy Grief in Bucharest, Romania in 1948. Izi grew up in Piatra Neamț, Romania with her younger brother Hary, and their parents Lisa and Solomon Korn. Izi was in high school when Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939, starting World War II. Originally, Romania chose to stay neutral in the war. However, in September 1940, a coalition government came to power led by General Ion Antonescu and the Iron Guard, a nationalistic party which promoted violent antisemitism. Following this change in government, Romania officially joined the Axis alliance, and restrictions against Jews began to intensify. The new Romanian government quickly passed regulations forbidding Jews from public education, and Izi was kicked out of school. The Iron Guard and local authorities in Piatra Neamt also terrorized Jews by confiscating the Jewish cemetery, torturing people into giving up their wealth and property, and restricting their movement around town. In August 1944, opposition politicians overthrew Antonescu and signed an armistice with the Soviet Union. Romanian troops then started working with the Allies. Following the ousting of the antisemitic Romanian government and the German military, Izi reenrolled in high school. She graduated in 1945, and moved to Bucharest to study textile engineering. In 1973, Izi and Ignacy immigrated to the United States with their daughter, and settled in San Francisco.