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April 21, 2016

Inside the archives

When the Museum opened in 1992, it had only been collecting memorabilia from Survivors for a year or so. Thus it is not surprising to hear that there were only a few hundred objects in the collection at that time. However, it didn’t necessarily matter that there were few objects on display because the Museum was designed as a backdrop for the survivors to tell their story. These historical eyewitnesses were in a sense ‘living’ exhibits. Over the years, curators added artefacts to the displays where possible. By the time we dismantled the old Holocaust exhibition last month, we counted 156 objects on display.

What have we done with them? They are all safely packed away in storage in acid-free archival packaging material. Some items will reappear on the new Holocaust displays; others will remain resting safely in the Archives until there is another opportunity to display them. Now with a collection numbering over 8,000 items, only a small percentage will make it onto the new display.

Watch this space to find out how many artefacts will star in the new Holocaust exhibition.

Author  – Roslyn Sugarman, Chief Curator