Preserving memory: project launched to save shoes belonging to victims of Auschwitz
The Auschwitz Museum has announced a new project to preserve 8,000 of the children’s shoes that were worn by those who entered the death camp, most of whom would be gassed to death soon after.
Most of the children’s shoes are on display in the Museum’s permanent exhibition and it is this part that often moves visitors the most.
With the haunting image of the piles of shoes left behind by those who perished in Auschwitz etched into the collective memory of humanity, the project aims to slow down the decay of the materials.
As such, the shoes will undergo a state-of-the-art conservation process. Moreover, each will be scanned and photographed for the purpose of creating a detailed record.
Each shoe will be scanned and photographed for the purpose of creating a detailed record.
Funded by the Auschwitz-Birkenau Foundation and other partners, the initiative seeks to ensure that these shoes, with their different
characteristics and traces of use, remain a powerful testimony for as long as possible.
Rafał Pióro, the deputy director of the museum responsible for conservation, said: “The children’s shoes are one of the most moving testimonies to the crimes committed at Auschwitz, which is why it is so important to take action to preserve them for as long as possible. In the conservation work planned, it will be particularly important to take an individual approach to each of the shoes.”
The shoes will undergo processes aimed at stopping corrosion, the structural reinforcement of leather elements, and weatherproofing.
Depending on their condition, and after specialised testing, the shoes will undergo processes aimed at stopping corrosion caused by any metal parts, the structural reinforcement of leather elements, and weatherproofing of metal components.
After being scanned and photographed, a record card will be made containing a detailed description of every shoe. Each of the shoes has different characteristics, damage and traces of use by the owners, the museum said.
Each of the shoes has different characteristics, damage and traces of use by the owners.
The museum’s collections include nearly 110,000 pairs of shoes, 8,000 of which belonged to children.
Most of the children’s shoes are on display in the Museum’s permanent exhibition and it is this part that often moves visitors the most. Sandals, slippers, and boots are just a few examples of the many shoe styles included in this vast assortment.
It is possible that some shoes might be traced back to their owners.
The majority of the footwear was discovered following the camp’s liberation and consists of single shoes; pairs make up a much smaller percentage.
Although most of the children’s footwear is unidentifiable, there are a few that still bear the maker’s marks and can be tracked down. It is also possible that some shoes could be traced back to their owners thanks to distinctive markings like names and addresses.
The majority of the footwear was discovered following the camp’s liberation
and consists of single shoes.
In 2020, the identity of a six-year-old boy who was gassed to death in Auschwitz was discovered after a handwritten inscription was found inside an old shoe during conservation work.
Conservation staff discovered the inscription showing that the shoes belonged to a six-year-old boy named Amos Steinberg, who was sent to Auschwitz from Theresienstadt Ghetto near Prague on October 4th, 1944.
In 2020, the identity of a six-year-old boy was discovered after a handwritten inscription was found inside an old shoe.
An estimated 232,000 children and teenagers were deported to Auschwitz; approximately 216,000 were Jews, 11,000 Roma, 3,000 Poles, over a thousand Belarussians, and several hundred Russians, Ukrainians, and other nationalities.
In all, the camp recorded the presence of almost 23,000 children and teenagers, but only around 700 were freed when the camp was liberated in January 1945.
