us-005578-irn49839-irn11666
type: RecordSet
archival history: The coat was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 1996 by Harvey Shreibman.
biographical history: Erich Sakofski (later Harvey Shreibman, 1925-2007) was born in Pruzana, Poland (now Pruz︠h︡any, Belarus) to Nachum Dawid (1895-1943) and Rachel Ross (1897-1943) Sakofski. He had one older brother, Avrum. Nachum ran a leather business selling raw materials to shoemakers. Nachum was very devout, and attended services at the synagogue three times a day. While at services, Rachel would mind the store, and sometimes Erich would help. Avrum had completed his studies at the local Gymnasium, or public secondary school, while Erich attended school at the local Yeshiva, an Orthodox Jewish secondary school. On September 1, 1939, Germany invaded western Poland, and in mid-September, the Soviet Union occupied eastern Poland in accordance with the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact. Pruzana fell under Soviet control, and all private businesses were banned. This forced all of the Jewish merchants and shopkeepers, as well as cultural and religious institutions, to close. Soviet authorities seized and nationalized Nachum’s store, and marked his passport to indicate that he was a businessman, which severely lowered his social status. There were very few jobs for Jewish people, and Nachum would have received the worst possible position that required him to work on the Sabbath, a sacred practice he was not willing to break. This decision left him with no income, and had a large impact on the family. Several times that fall, members of the Soviet security forces invaded the Sakofski family’s home in order to call Nachum a parasite for depending on others for his livelihood. Erich’s school was shut down after the invasion, and he was required to attend the Soviet public school and sit through many lectures centered on Soviet indoctrination. The Soviet authorities established a teacher-training course, which Avrum successfully completed and quickly found a post in a neighboring town that helped support his family. In 1940, security forces dug up the family’s yard on the pretense of looking for a cac…
physical characteristics and technical requirements: Blue and gray, vertically striped, knee-length, long-sleeved, mediumweight, twill weave cloth coat. The blue stripes are printed on both sides of the gray cloth, and the seams are machine-stitched with black thread. The collar has pointed ends with rounded tips, and the underside is reinforced with a facing of heavily faded striped cloth. The collar is fastened with a silver-colored metal hook and eye closure, and the eye is now detached and missing. On the front, two thick, circular, black plastic buttons are stitched just to one side of the upper right placket. Below the buttons, three evenly spaced, circular sections of cloth have been cut away where three buttons were once attached. There are five corresponding, finished, horizontal buttonholes along the left placket. On the left breast is a discolored brown rectangle where a prisoner number patch was likely attached. Sewn to the front of each hip is a flap-top patch pocket, with a gray, plain weave cloth lining the underside of the flap and banding along the top edge. The left pocket is torn and detached along one side. The coat’s back, center seam has a 13-inch vertical vent. The sleeves are lined and the inner chest is faced with gray, plain weave cloth. The inner placket is faced with mismatched sections of discolored striped cloth. A narrow facing strip is sewn on the interior at each hip to reinforce the pockets. On the exterior lower front right side, is a large, hand-darned repair in gray thread. The hem has been altered by hand with black thread, and is frayed and detached in several places. The cloth is worn and heavily discolored overall. There are small holes on the lower back and sides, and portions of the vent edge and hem have been torn away. There are large sections of dry, cracked, gray accretions on the lower back and sides.
conditions of access: No restrictions on access
conditions of use: No restrictions on use
date: 1945 February-1945 March
has or had holder: us-005578
has or had identifier: 1
has or had subject: 2
has or had subject: 0
has or had subject: 803
has or had subject: 341
has or had subject: 403
has or had subject: 3
has record set type: Item
identifier: irn11666
is or was included in: us-005578-irn49839
record resource extent: overall: Height: 40.250 inches (102.235 cm) | Width: 16.625 inches (42.228 cm)
results or resulted from: 1
scope and content: Striped uniform coat issued to Erich Sakofski (later Harvey Shreibman) while he was imprisoned at Flossenbürg concentration camp between February and March 1945. Erich was living in Pruzana, Poland (now Pruz︠h︡any, Belarus), with his parents, Nachum and Rachel, and his older brother, Avrum, when Poland was invaded by Germany and the Soviet Union in September 1939. Pruzana came under Soviet control with authorities shuttering all Jewish institutions and quickly closing or nationalizing all businesses, including Nachum’s. On June 22, 1941, Germany invaded Soviet-occupied Poland, and by September, all Jews in Pruzana were living within a closed ghetto. In late January 1943, the Jews of Pruzana were deported for collaborating with partisans. Avrum hid during the deportation, hoping to join the resistance afterwards, but likely perished. Erich and his parents were transported to Auschwitz-Birkenau killing center. Erich was selected for work details, while his parents were likely sent to the gas chambers. After six weeks in quarantine, Erich was transferred to the main Auschwitz camp and moved to Auschwitz-Monowitz (Buna) in March 1944. In January 1945, as Soviet forces advanced on the region, all Auschwitz camps were evacuated. Erich was deported to three concentration camps in Germany: Sachsenhausen, Flossenbürg, and Platting before being liberated by US forces during a forced march on May 2, 1945. Following the war, Erich lived at Weilheim and Prien am Chiemsee displaced persons (DP) camps in Germany. On December 14, 1947, Erich sailed to the United States aboard the SS Marine Tiger.
title: Concentration camp uniform coat worn by a Polish Jewish prisoner