us-005578-irn47278-irn61265
record resource extent: overall: Height: 6.875 inches (17.463 cm) | Width: 9.000 inches (22.86 cm)
conditions of access: No restrictions on access
scope and content: Watercolor of distant snow topped mountains created by 23 year old Edward Herzbaum in March 1943 in Kanaqin (Khanaqin), Iraq. Edward was a soldier in the Polish Army of the East which had marched south from the Soviet Union to join the British Army in Iraq. They journeyed to the border town of Kanaqin where the British had a large military base and field hospital where many died after the long, arduous march from Russia. There were oil fields near the city and it was also along a major Muslim pilgrimage route. The Corps next went to Habbiniya where from March-September 1943 they received artillery and other military training. Edward, age 19, left Łódź, Poland, shortly after Nazi Germany occupied the country in September 1939. He went to stay with family in Soviet controlled Lvov. In June 1940, Edward was arrested by Soviet security police and exiled to a forced labor camp. Germany invaded the Soviet Union in June 1941. Edward was released as part of an amnesty granted to Polish prisoners. He headed south to join Anders Army, a Polish military unit formed by General Anders per agreement with Stalin. In August 1942, the unit left Soviet territory and became the 2nd Polish Corps in the British Army. In February 1944, they deployed to join the 8th British Army in the Italian Campaign. The Corps fought its way north and was honored for their bravery in the May 1944 Battle of Monte Cassino. They were in Italy on May 7, 1945, when the war ended. Edward learned that his mother had died in the Łódź Ghetto in 1943. He studied architecture in Rome until the British decided to allow Polish Corps veterans to immigrate to England in October 1946. He then served in the Polish Resettlement Corps for two years and completed his degree.
has record set type: Item
date: 1943 March
biographical history: Edward Henryk Herzbaum (later Hartry) was born on October 6, 1920, in Vienna, Austria. He was the only son of a Jewish couple, Dr. Alexander and Fanny Hermelin Herzbaum. Alexander was a chemical engineer, born in Tarnow, Poland, in February 1886 to Mendel (1855-1930) and Chana Ettinger Herzbaum, who married in 1882. They also had a daughter Gisela (1884-1912.) Chana died in 1886. In 1888, Mendel married Beila Lea Ettinger (b. August 22, 1864). Mendel and Beila had two children: Jakob (1888-1966) and Herman. Edward's mother Fanny was born in Boryslaw, Poland, near Lvov on May 30, 1890, to Samuel (d. 1922) and Chaje Sara Backenroth Hermelin. Fanny had four siblings, Rifke (b. 1883), Cirl (b. 1888), Zacharje (1884-1925), and Abraham (1885-1886.) In 1928, Edward's family moved to Poland and settled in Zawiercie. Edward had asthma and wore glasses, as he was very shortsighted. In 1934, they moved to Łódź. Alexander, 51, died in July 1937 of cancer. Edward graduated from high school in May 1938, and deferred his military service to enroll at the Warsaw Polytechnic, Faculty of Architecture. He had completed two semesters when Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939. Edward joined the Polish Auxiliary Forces as a volunteer and was arrested by the Germans with other paramilitary youth a few days later. Edward escaped and returned to Łódź. The Soviet Union invaded and occupied eastern Poland. German occupying authorities in Łódź enacted oppressive anti-Jewish measures. At the urging of his mother, Edward, then 19, left Łódź on December 6, 1939, and went east to Lvov, which was under Soviet control. In Lvov, Edward lived with his maternal aunt and had an assortment of jobs, including office worker at a construction site, skiing instructor, and lifeguard at a swimming pool in a Soviet sports center. In June 1940, Edward was arrested by the NKVD (Soviet Security Police), tortured, and exiled to a gulag near Rybinsk on the Volga River. The prisoners logged and hauled trees in…
has or had holder: us-005578
type: RecordSet
has or had some members with language: pol
physical characteristics and technical requirements: Watercolor on discolored white paper depicting a receding view of several far away purple and green snow topped mountains against a blue and white sky with light gray clouds. In the foreground is light brown-yellow ground with light and dark green shapes. The place name and date is written in Polish in the lower right corner. The color is applied very smoothly, bringing a sense of stillness to the landscape. The place name and date are in the lower right corner. front, lower right corner, cursive, black ink : Kanaqin / marzec 43 [Kanaqin March 1943)
has or had identifier: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/units/us-005578-irn47278-irn61265/alternateIDs/1
identifier: irn61265
conditions of use: Restrictions on use
title: Watercolor of distant snowy mountains created by a Jewish soldier, 2nd Polish Corps
results or resulted from: http://lod.ehri-project-test.eu/units/us-005578-irn47278-irn61265/acquisitions/1
archival history: The watercolor was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2012 by Krystyna Mew, the daughter of Edward (Herzbaum) Hartry.
is or was included in: us-005578-irn47278