us-005578-irn36907-irn43050
has record set type: Item
has beginning date: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/dates/1942-01-01
title: MG 34 and 42 round drum magazine recovered postwar at a mass execution site
identifier: irn43050
has or had holder: us-005578
has end date: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/dates/2005-12-31
record resource extent: overall: Height: 4.500 inches (11.43 cm) | Width: 5.750 inches (14.605 cm) | Depth: 5.750 inches (14.605 cm)
has or had identifier: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/units/us-005578-irn36907-irn43050/alternateIDs/1
has end date: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/dates/1942-12-31
archival history: The magazine was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2010 by Father Patrick Desbois on behalf of Yahad-in Unum.
type: RecordSet
physical characteristics and technical requirements: Circular, ribbed steel drum magazine with a hinged lid. The lid exterior has a center screw and an indented on the edge where a rectangular, round topped tab with a metal spring is attached. Near this is a rectangular latch that folds over onto a cylindrical hinge on the base. A manufacturer’s code and date are engraved around the rim. The base has a rectangular bar handle on one side. On the other side is a rectangular metal attachment with a rectangular tab that slides over a rectangular opening; this is where the cartridge belts feed out of the magazine. Next is a curved semi-cylindrical groove. On the base underside is a small rectangular metal plate with one side folded over. It is coated with rust overall. lid edge, engraved : hqu 42 lid edge, engraved : 002
is or was included in: us-005578-irn36907
biographical history: Father Patrick Desbois is the president of Yahad- In Unum (Together as One), an organization he co-founded in 2004 to develop and promote Christian-Jewish understanding. He is also a Roman Catholic priest and director of the Episcopal Committee for Relations with Judaism, which is connected with the French Conference of Bishops. Father Desbois was born in Chalon-sur-Saone, France, in 1955 and grew up on a farm in the Bresse region of eastern France. As a young man, he joined the French civil service and taught mathematics in West Africa. He went to Calcutta to work with Mother Teresa for three months. After this, he decided to join the priesthood, a decision that shocked his secular family. He became a parish priest and studied Judaism and learned Hebrew. He asked to do outreach work with groups such as Roma, ex-prisoners, and Jews, and was appointed a liaison with the Jewish community in France. His family had lived on the farm throughout the German occupation of France during World War II, 6/25/1940-8/25/1944. His paternal grandfather, as a soldier in the French Army, had been deported by the Germans following the occupation. He was sent to Rava-Ruska prison camp, then on the Ukrainian side of the Polish border, now in Ukraine. His grandfather never talked about his experiences, but he did once comment to his grandson that, as bad as it was for French prisoners-of-war, it was much worse for other types of inmates. A maternal cousin who had been a member of the resistance was deported and killed in a German concentration camp. As an adult, he learned from his mother that the family had often hidden members of the French Resistance on the farm. Desbois was haunted by his grandfather's silence. He made repeated trips to Rava-Ruska where his grandfather had been imprisoned. On one visit, the mayor took him to the edge of the forest where a group of elderly villagers were gathered to tell him what they had witnessed. Desbois finally learned what his grandfather would n…
results or resulted from: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/units/us-005578-irn36907-irn43050/acquisitions/1
conditions of use: No restrictions on use
has beginning date: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/dates/2005-01-01
conditions of access: No restrictions on access
scope and content: Bucket shaped drum magazine for the MG 34 (Maschinengewehr 34) and MG 42 excavated ca. 2005 by Yahad-In Unum from a mass execution and grave site in Ukraine uncovered by their research into atrocities committed by Nazi Germany against the Jewish population during WWII. It stores 50 to 70 rounds of ammunition in a spiral and feeds cartridges into the chamber. The German Army issued the MG 34 in 1934. It was the primary infantry machine gun used in the war, until it was replaced by the MG 42, which had similar features but a higher rate of fire. In September 1939, following Germany's invasion of Poland, areas of eastern Poland, now in Ukraine, were occupied by the Soviet Union pursuant to the terms of the German-Soviet Pact. In late June 1941, Germany launched Operation Barbarossa, a surprise attack on Russia. The military assault was coordinated with killing squads whose goal was the Final Solution, the elimination of all Jews from the conquered territories. With the assistance of trained collaborators and the local populace, the goal was achieved through deportations to killing centers and mass executions throughout the region. The lack of adequate rail transport meant that many villages had killing fields where the Jews were shot and buried in huge ditches, along with the bullets and other evidence. Through interviews with the remaining eyewitnesses, Yahad-In Unum locates and documents these remains of a Holocaust by bullets and offers respectful remembrance for the fallen.