The wallet was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2013 by Janet Zilczer and Judith Zilczer, the daughters of Paul Zilczer.
Paul Zilczer was born on August 30, 1908, in Budapest, Hungary, to a Jewish couple. He graduated from college and worked as a physicist. Paul married Margit Gelyi, a young Jewish woman, and the couple settled in Budapest. Margit was born on June 19, 1907, in Gyor, Hungary, to Tibor and Vilma Winkler Gelyi. During the 1930’s, Hungary was an ally of Nazi Germany, and in 1938, Hungary’s fascist regime adopted anti-Jewish race laws based on Germany’s Nuremberg Laws. In 1939, the Hungarian government established a forced-labor service for able-bodied Jewish men of military age. Paul and Margit travelled to England in 1939. On May 17, Paul boarded the S.S. Manhattan in Southampton, England, and sailed to New York City, where he lived with his cousin Emil and his family. Margit travelled to several places in Europe, including London, England, and Paris, France, before returning to Budapest. In November 1940, Hungary entered World War II as part of the Axis alliance. In March 1944, Germany invaded Hungary to ensure Hungary's continued involvement with the war effort and their cooperation in the deportation of all Hungarian Jews to concentration camps. On January 18, 1945, the Soviet Army liberated Budapest. The war in Europe ended on May 7, 1945. In 1946, Paul learned that Margit, 37, had been deported to Ravensbrück concentration camp in northern Germany on October 23, 1944, and killed in November. Paul married his second wife, Rose (1917-2011), in approximately 1947. The couple settled in Waterbury, Connecticut, and had two daughters. Paul worked as a research physicist. Paul, age 65, died in November 1973, in Arlington, Virginia. Margit Gelyi was born on June 19, 1907, in Gyor, Hungary, to a Jewish couple, Tibor and Vilma Winkler Gelyi. Margit married Paul Zilczer, a young Jewish man, and the couple settled in Budapest, Hungary. Paul was born on August 30, 1908, in Budapest. After graduating university, Paul began his career as a physicist. During the 1930’s, Hungary’s fascist regime was greatly influenced by Nazi Germany. In 1938, Hungarian authorities adopted discriminatory anti-Jewish laws, based on Germany’s Nuremberg Laws. Jewish persons were defined in racial terms, and excluded from full participation in many professions. In 1939, Margit and Paul both travelled to England. Margit spent time in London and then Paris, France, before returning to Budapest. In May, Paul sailed from Southampton, England, to the United States, where he moved in with a cousin’s family in New York City. In November 1940, Hungary entered World War II as part of the Axis alliance. Beginning in 1941, Hungarian authorities deported and killed thousands of Jews from recently annexed territories, but resisted doing the same to Jewish Hungarian citizens although pressured by their German ally. In March 1944, Germany invaded Hungary and began transporting Hungarian Jews to concentration camps and killing centers. On October 23, 1944, Margit was deported to Ravensbrück concentration camp for women in northern Germany, where she was killed in November 1944.
Rectangular, light brown leather bi-fold wallet with a decorative patchwork pattern of red, brown, and black leather pieces stitched to the top flap with red thread. The flap extends from the back of the wallet and folds over to cover the front when closed. The flap underside has a silver-colored metal snap stud, with a corresponding snap socket in the center front panel. The front and back panels are made from a single piece of folded leather connected by leather triangles on the sides, which form an accordion pocket. A rectangular divider is sewn into the front of the pocket, creating a slot pocket. The flap and wallet interior are lined with light brown cloth. The wallet is worn with missing sections.
No restrictions on access
No restrictions on use
overall: Height: 2.500 inches (6.35 cm) | Width: 3.625 inches (9.208 cm) | Depth: 0.375 inches (0.953 cm)
Patchwork leather wallet brought with Paul Zilczer when he left Budapest, Hungary, for the United States, in May 1939. Paul, a physicist, and his wife Margit lived in Budapest, when in 1938, the fascist Hungarian government passed laws restricting the rights of Jews. In 1939, Paul and Margit both traveled to England. On May 17, Paul sailed to New York City where he lived with his cousin Emil and his family. Margit returned to Budapest. In November 1940, Hungary entered World War II as a German ally. In March 1944, Germany invaded Hungary to ensure Hungary's continued involvement with the war effort and their cooperation in the deportation of all Hungarian Jews to concentration camps. Margit was deported to Ravensbrück concentration camp in Germany and killed in November 1944.
Patchwork leather wallet brought to the US by a Jewish Hungarian refugee