Historic Discovery In A Former Nazi Camp: Jewish Hoard Found After 80 Years
Archaeologists have made a historic discovery in a former Nazi concentration camp in Poland - a unique handmade Jewish hoard.
Around 250,000 Jews were exterminated by Hitler's army in the Nazi camp at Sobibor, which was established in March 1942. Here, an international team discovered a treasure trove of jewelry belonging to the murdered prisoners.
Three pendants, engraved with the image of Moses holding the tablets of the Ten Commandments and the Hebrew prayer "Shema Yisrael" ("Hear, O Israel"), were found at a historic site in Poland that housed the Sobibor extermination camp, according to Haaretz.
The Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) announced the discovery on Thursday, January 27, 2022, on the occasion of International Holocaust Remembrance Day. Researchers said the pendants were handmade and originated in Eastern Europe, from Lviv in Ukraine, Poland, and former Czechoslovakia.
The Heartbreaking Stories Behind The Pendents
"Little is known about the stories behind the pendants, which are heartbreaking," said Yoram Haimi of the Israel Antiquities Authority, one of three archaeologists leading the excavations in Poland.
"We were able to identify a kind of tradition or fashion among Jewish communities in Eastern Europe, that of pendants that were inscribed with 'Shema Yisrael' on one side and a representation of Moses on the other," Yoram Haimi added.
One of the pendants was discovered by archaeologists at a barracks where women undressed before being sent to the gas chambers. The area also revealed dozens of pieces of jewelry belonging to women in the camp.
The Sobibor camp was established in March 1942, along with the extermination camps at Treblinka and Belzec. Around 250,000 Jews, mostly from Poland, the Netherlands (now the Netherlands), and Slovakia, were killed at Sobibor between April 1942 and October 1943.
Around 250,000 Jews were exterminated by Hitler's army in the Nazi camp at Sobibor, which was established in March 1942. Here, an international team discovered a treasure trove of jewelry belonging to the murdered prisoners.
Three pendants, engraved with the image of Moses holding the tablets of the Ten Commandments and the Hebrew prayer "Shema Yisrael" ("Hear, O Israel"), were found at a historic site in Poland that housed the Sobibor extermination camp, according to Haaretz.
The Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) announced the discovery on Thursday, January 27, 2022, on the occasion of International Holocaust Remembrance Day. Researchers said the pendants were handmade and originated in Eastern Europe, from Lviv in Ukraine, Poland, and former Czechoslovakia.
The Heartbreaking Stories Behind The Pendents
"Little is known about the stories behind the pendants, which are heartbreaking," said Yoram Haimi of the Israel Antiquities Authority, one of three archaeologists leading the excavations in Poland.
"We were able to identify a kind of tradition or fashion among Jewish communities in Eastern Europe, that of pendants that were inscribed with 'Shema Yisrael' on one side and a representation of Moses on the other," Yoram Haimi added.
One of the pendants was discovered by archaeologists at a barracks where women undressed before being sent to the gas chambers. The area also revealed dozens of pieces of jewelry belonging to women in the camp.
The Sobibor camp was established in March 1942, along with the extermination camps at Treblinka and Belzec. Around 250,000 Jews, mostly from Poland, the Netherlands (now the Netherlands), and Slovakia, were killed at Sobibor between April 1942 and October 1943.
