us-005578-irn517745-irn517747
type: RecordSet
archival history: The book was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2005 by Mara Vishniac Kohn.
biographical history: Mara Vishniac was born in Berlin, Germany, in 1926 to Luta Berg, born on June 16, 1899, and Roman Vishniac, born on August 19, 1897, in Pavlovsk, Russia. Her brother, Wolf, was born on April 22, 1922. Roman was a trained biologist but was prevented from working in his field due to war and political strife. He moved to Berlin in 1920 and while working various jobs, embarked upon a career in photography. The family considered themselves emancipated Jews and did not practice Jewish rituals. Her father often attended synagogue, though her mother did not. Mara was more religious, reciting prayers daily. In 1932, Mara joined the Werkleute, a Zionist youth organization, and Wolf was a member of the Hashomer Hazair [Young Guard of the Zionist Left Wing]. Hitler’s appointment as Chancellor on January 30, 1933, led to increasingly severe restrictions on Jews. Propagandist and political posters began to appear and Mara’s father wanted to document the relationship between Hitler and President Paul von Hindenburg, while Hindenberg was still a part of the political landscape. He used Mara as a prop, photographing her in front of election and anti-Semitic posters. If questioned, he could tell people that he was taking pictures of his daughter. Mara remembers not being allowed to go to the movies, play tennis, ice skate, or freely take part in most childhood activities. Stores no longer welcomed Jews; Mara and her friends would debate whether they should go in, afraid that they would be physically thrown out or get their parents in trouble. In 1935, her father was commissioned by the Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) to photograph Eastern European Jews. He traveled across Eastern and Central Europe until 1938. On November 10, 1938, when Mara was 12 years old, she witnessed the events of Kristallnacht. Two American visitors from the JDC had come to see Roman and during their visit they heard a commotion in the street. Going out onto the balcony, they watched as Germans willf…
physical characteristics and technical requirements: Book has a plastic laminate cover and some stamped markings. 158 p. ; ill. ; 25 cm. On cover: Vom Führer genehmigt. Originally published: Berlin : C. Rentsch, 1933.
conditions of access: No restrictions on access
conditions of use: No restrictions on use
has beginning date: 1938-01-01
has end date: 1938-12-31
has or had holder: us-005578
has or had identifier: 1
has or had some members with language: rus
has or had some members with language: eng
has or had some members with language: deu
has record set type: Item
identifier: irn517747
is or was included in: us-005578-irn517745
results or resulted from: 1
scope and content: Hitler in der Karikatur der Welt, a book of caricatures of Hitler that belonged to Mara Vishniac. This is a 1938 edition of a book originally published in 1933 with the phrase"approved by the Fuhre" printed on the cover. Mara lived in Berlin with her parents, Roman and Luta, and brother, Wolf. After Hitler's appointment as Chancellor in 1933, life became very precarious for Jews in Germany. Following the Kristallnacht pogrom on November 9-10, 1938, Mara, age 12, and her 16 year old brother Wolf were sent to stay with relatives in Riga, Latvia. Soon after, Mara was sent to a home for refugee children in Sweden. In 1940, Mara, her mother, and brother moved to Stockholm and obtained visas to travel to the United States. Her father was arrested as an enemy alien in German occupied Paris and imprisoned. He escaped after three months and, with the aid of the JDC, which had sponsored his photography, he obtained a visa to the US. The family reunited in Lisbon, Portugal, and left on the SS Siboney, arriving in New York on December 31, 1940.
title: Book