us-005578-irn42320-irn42932
type: RecordSet
archival history: The photocopy of an autobiographical drawing was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2010 by Peretz Chorshati.
biographical history: Pavel Szenwald was born on December 28, 1920, in Warsaw, Poland. He was a student at the Technical College in Warsaw when the Germans invaded Poland on September 1, 1939. A few months later, he was imprisoned in the Warsaw ghetto and in March 1941 was transported to the Nedev labor camp; he escaped and returned to the ghetto. In 1942, Pavel used forged Polish papers obtained by his father and escaped the ghetto. He posed as a German national, joined the German army, and served as a guard at a prisoner of war camp for Soviet prisoners. Believing his identity was about to be revealed, he fled his post in March 1943 and traveled over 600 miles to the Lida ghetto in Poland (Belarus). He escaped in April to the forest in Belarus and joined the Bielski partisans as a machine gunner and saboteur. In December, the group established a permanent base in the Naliboki forest which was under the administration of a Soviet partisan group led by General Chernyshev. The Bielski group established a relationship with the Soviet partisans who provided them with weapons. In July 1944, the camp was liberated by the Soviet Army; Pavel and his battalion fought alongside the Soviets. After the war in Europe ended on May 7, 1945, Pavel was drafted into the Soviet Army. Pavel returned to Warsaw in August 1945. He stayed at an army barracks and searched the ghetto ruins for surviving relatives but found none. Not wanting to return to his Russian army unit, Pavel decided to go to Palestine. In October 1945, he joined Beitar, a right wing Zionist group which was involved in illegal immigration and military activities. He gave up his papers, uniform, and weapons in exchange for ragged clothing and forged papers declaring him a Greek refugee. In November 1945, he crossed the border into Czechoslovakia with other Poles. They stayed in a safe house in Prague and were forbidden to leave, but Pavel heard that he could get cakes in town and left. He stopped to ask directions and was arrested. His iden…
physical characteristics and technical requirements: Black and white photocopy of an ink wash drawing on white rectangular paper depicting an office interior. A man with short dark hair stands in front of a large desk wearing a jacket, knee length pants, and boots. The man seated behind the large desk has a receding hairline, glasses, wears a suit, and writes on a pad. A light hangs overhead. On the back wall is a shield with a hammer and sickle and a coat and hat on hooks; on the right wall a 5 pointed star hangs above a portrait of a man. In the left background is a room where an armed guard stands with his hand on the shoulder of a seated man. There is a paragraph length artist’s caption in Hebrew, dates, and the artist’s name inscribed on the front. A number in the left corner is covered in correction fluid. There are 2 punched holes at the top center of the paper. On the reverse is a piece of aged adhesive tape with a brown stain visible through the front at the top. front, lower right, photocopied, black ink : Hebrew text [In Prague we were put up in a house and were forbidden from going out. I heard that in the “Old City” it was possible to get…cakes! I could not resist the temptation and went out into the street. I asked for directions - was arrested and taken to a Russian office - I was interrogated. My identity and the fact that I was AWOL were discovered and it was clear what awaited me. Then I heard the interrogator speaking in …Yiddish to me. He accompanied me to the place where we were staying…Go to Palestine…] / November 45
conditions of access: No restrictions on access
conditions of use: No restrictions on use
date: 1945 November
has beginning date: 1995-01-01
has end date: 1995-12-31
has or had holder: us-005578
has or had identifier: 1
has or had some members with language: heb
has record set type: Item
identifier: irn42932
is or was included in: us-005578-irn42320
record resource extent: overall: Height: 8.125 inches (20.638 cm) | Width: 11.625 inches (29.528 cm)
results or resulted from: 1
scope and content: Photocopy of a drawing from a series of 19 narrative illustrations created by Peretz Chorshati (born Pavel Szenwald) between 1994 and 1997 about his wartime experiences. It depicts Pavel standing in a Russian interrogation office. In November 1945, Pavel left a detention camp to get cakes, was arrested, then released. Pavel was an 18 year old student in Warsaw when the Germans invaded Poland on September 1, 1939. He was imprisoned in the Warsaw ghetto until his father got him forged papers and he escaped. He posed as a German national, and joined the German army. In March 1943, Pavel deserted the German army and joined the Bielski partisan group. After the war ended on May 7, 1945, Pavel returned to Warsaw and joined Beitar, a right wing Zionist group. In June 1946, he illegally emigrated to British ruled Palestine.
title: Photocopy of an autobiographical ink drawing of a uniformed man and his Russian interrogator