us-005578-irn58677-irn3322
type: RecordSet
physical characterisitics and technical requirements: a: Floor-length, fully lined, black, floral-patterned, cloth robe, trimmed thin, black cord-like piping, and stitched with black thread. It has long, full sleeves and a low, stand collar fastened by a metal hook-and-eye closure. The robe is fastened on the front by a column of 24 shank buttons along the full-length center placket, which is flanked by two 38-inch long cords with tasseled ends. There is a large slash pocket at waist height on each side of the robe. The sleeves and lower hem are very wide and edged with a wide cloth band. A detachable, matching cloth capelet (b) is fastened to the robe using one of the six shank buttons along the upper portion of each sleeve and a single shank button above the vent on the back. An upper button from the main placket is now missing, the bottom hem is frayed, and there are loose threads and discolorations throughout the cloth. b: A wide, semi-circular, black capelet matching the robe (a) has small, thread loops at each end and a cloth loop on the center of the underside to fasten it in place over the wearer’s shoulders and upper arms and back. The thread loops correspond to the row of buttons on each robe sleeve allowing for an adjustable fit, while the cloth loop fastens to the back button. There are loose threads and discolorations in the cloth throughout.
conditions of access: No restrictions on access
conditions of use: No restrictions on use
has beginning date: 1922-01-01
has end date: 1952-12-31
has or had holder: us-005578
has or had identifier: 1
has record set type: Item
history: Ferenc Hevesi (1898-1952) was born in Lugos, Hungary (now Lugoj, Romania) to Simon (1868-1943) and Janka Hevesi (nee Brody, 1864-1945). He had four siblings: Jenő (later Eugene, 1895-1983), Géza (1897-?), Imre (1904-1998), and Nóra (later Kürschner). Simon was the town’s rabbi until 1905, when the family moved to Budapest. Ferenc entered the National Rabbinical Training Institute in 1912. Following his graduation in 1922, Ferenc worked as a rabbi in the city of Székesfehérvár, Hungary. On November 2, 1922, he married Magda Rottenstein (1906-1977), and their daughter, Eva (1924-2009), was born two years later. In 1930, the family returned to Budapest, where they shared a large apartment with Ferenc’s parents. Simon was the chief rabbi of Hungary, and Ferenc worked under his father at the Dohany Street synagogue. The combined household was very traditional, and they observed all of the holidays and ate exclusively kosher. They had a close extended family, and they regularly met at Simon and Janka’s home for meals. Antisemitism was rampant in Budapest, and despite the risk for persecution, Ferenc remained an outspoken opponent of Fascism. During a Friday night service in 1932, a shooter came into the synagogue; Ferenc was able to disarm the man. Around 1933 or 1934, Ferenc, Magda, and Eva moved into their own apartment. In June 1938, Ferenc’s brother, Jenő, who was a diplomat, changed his name to Eugene and immigrated to the United States with his wife and young son. During the 1930s, both Ferenc and Simon visited the US, but never considered leaving Hungary permanently. Ferenc was offered a job at a synagogue in New York City, but did not want to abandon his congregation and turned it down. Things became worse for the Jewish population as Hungary began instituting anti-Jewish policies modeled after German laws in 1938, and then joined the Axis alliance in November 1940. The family was able to keep abreast of the war by illegally listening to Allied radio broadcasts. I…
history: The robe was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 1990 by Eva Ehrlich, the daughter of Ferenc Hevesi.
identifier: irn3322
is or was included in: us-005578-irn58677
record resource extent: a: Height: 56.500 inches (143.51 cm) | Width: 18.500 inches (46.99 cm) b: Height: 12.750 inches (32.385 cm) | Width: 34.000 inches (86.36 cm)
results or resulted from: 1
scope and content: Black robe with detachable capelet used for everyday religious services, brought by Rabbi Ferenc Hevesi from Budapest, Hungary, to New York City in the fall of 1946. Ferenc joined the Dohany Street synagogue as a rabbi when he moved with his wife, Magda, and daughter, Eva, to Budapest in 1930. When his father, Rabbi Simon Hevesi, died in 1943, Ferenc succeeded him as co-chief rabbi of Hungary. Hungary was allied with Germany, but when the Hungarian government began seeking a ceasefire with the Allies, the German army occupied Hungary on March 19, 1944. Afterward, Ferenc and his family were forced out of their apartment into one shared with other families. A curfew was imposed on Jews and Ferenc could only hold services at the synagogue if it did not conflict with the curfew. As chief rabbi, Ferenc was constantly harassed by the Germans, and pressured to become part of the Judenrat, which he refused. When the radically antisemitic, German-backed Arrow Cross Party took control of the government on October 15, Ferenc and his family went into hiding. The section of the city they were in was liberated by the Soviet army on January 16, 1945. Ferenc became a chaplain for the Hungarian army, and returned to his former rabbinical duties. In the fall of 1946, Ferenc traveled to England and the United States, where he Anglicized his name to Francis. He gave speeches on behalf of the Hungarian Jewry, and presided over his daughter’s religious wedding ceremony in New York City. They stayed in the US, where Francis became rabbi for a succession of congregations in Georgia and Hawaii.
title: Black robe used by a Rabbi Ferenc Hevesi for everyday services