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  2. The Artifacts Collection
  3. Artifacts on Display in the Synagogue
  4. Plundered Torah Finials Restored

Plundered Torah Finials Restored

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A pair of silver Torah finials with the inscription: “Donated by Jakob and Bertha Weinschenk” that were stolen during the Kristallnacht pogrom and returned to their descendants sixty years later
A pair of silver Torah finials with the inscription: “Donated by Jakob and Bertha Weinschenk” that were stolen during the Kristallnacht pogrom and returned to their descendants sixty years later

A pair of silver Torah finials with the inscription: “Donated by Jakob and Bertha Weinschenk” that were stolen during the Kristallnacht pogrom and returned to their descendants sixty years later
Bertha Weinschenk
Bertha Weinschenk

Bertha Weinschenk
Detail of the German inscription on the Torah finials: “Gestiftet von (Donated by) Jakob & Bertha Weinschenk“
Detail of the German inscription on the Torah finials: “Gestiftet von (Donated by) Jakob & Bertha Weinschenk“

Detail of the German inscription on the Torah finials: “Gestiftet von (Donated by) Jakob & Bertha Weinschenk“
Diary that Bertha Weinschenk wrote in Switzerland recording her experiences in Theresienstadt
Diary that Bertha Weinschenk wrote in Switzerland recording her experiences in Theresienstadt

Diary that Bertha Weinschenk wrote in Switzerland recording her experiences in Theresienstadt
Song composed in Theresienstadt for Bertha Weinschenk’s 75th birthday on 11 May, 1944
Song composed in Theresienstadt for Bertha Weinschenk’s 75th birthday on 11 May, 1944

"The bravest woman in the entire room
Is this dear Mrs. Weinschenk, 
…And today she is 75 years old
We present to her our wishes
May my dream come true soon -
Anything better she could not wish for herself:
She sat, so I dreamed, among her loved ones
They sat with wine and in good health.
The room was comfortable and homey
We sang out loud with happy faces:
Little mother Weinschenk pour in [a wordplay: "Weinschenk" means host of a wine bar – "schenke ein" means pour in]
Long live little mother Weinschenk
With her children and grandchildren by her side."

Signed: Pauline Salomon, Hamburger, Paula Plaut, Hermann Plaut, Blanka Briska, Mathilde Heimberg, Martha Samson, Flora Ehrenwert, Martha Kluth

Song composed in Theresienstadt for Bertha Weinschenk’s 75th birthday on 11 May, 1944
Photos of Bertha Weinschenk’s grandparents, Nachum and Fanny Gutman
Photos of Bertha Weinschenk’s grandparents, Nachum and Fanny Gutman

Photos of Bertha Weinschenk’s grandparents, Nachum and Fanny Gutman
Group photo of the survivors of Theresienstadt who were miraculously sent to Switzerland
Group photo of the survivors of Theresienstadt who were miraculously sent to Switzerland

Group photo of the survivors of Theresienstadt who were miraculously sent to Switzerland
Bertha Weinschenk sitting on a park bench between two other survivors
Bertha Weinschenk sitting on a park bench between two other survivors

Bertha Weinschenk sitting on a park bench between two other survivors
Façade of the synagogue on Essenwein St., Nuremberg that was destroyed in the Kristallnacht pogrom in 1938
Façade of the synagogue on Essenwein St., Nuremberg that was destroyed in the Kristallnacht pogrom in 1938

Façade of the synagogue on Essenwein St., Nuremberg that was destroyed in the Kristallnacht pogrom in 1938
Interior of the synagogue on Essenwein St., Nuremberg after the Kristallnacht pogrom in 1938
Interior of the synagogue on Essenwein St., Nuremberg after the Kristallnacht pogrom in 1938

Interior of the synagogue on Essenwein St., Nuremberg after the Kristallnacht pogrom in 1938
A pair of silver Torah finials with the inscription: “Donated by Jakob and Bertha Weinschenk” that were stolen during the Kristallnacht pogrom and returned to their descendants sixty years later
A pair of silver Torah finials with the inscription: “Donated by Jakob and Bertha Weinschenk” that were stolen during the Kristallnacht pogrom and returned to their descendants sixty years later
Bertha Weinschenk
Bertha Weinschenk
Detail of the German inscription on the Torah finials: “Gestiftet von (Donated by) Jakob & Bertha Weinschenk“
Detail of the German inscription on the Torah finials: “Gestiftet von (Donated by) Jakob & Bertha Weinschenk“
Diary that Bertha Weinschenk wrote in Switzerland recording her experiences in Theresienstadt
Diary that Bertha Weinschenk wrote in Switzerland recording her experiences in Theresienstadt
Song composed in Theresienstadt for Bertha Weinschenk’s 75th birthday on 11 May, 1944
Song composed in Theresienstadt for Bertha Weinschenk’s 75th birthday on 11 May, 1944
Photos of Bertha Weinschenk’s grandparents, Nachum and Fanny Gutman
Photos of Bertha Weinschenk’s grandparents, Nachum and Fanny Gutman
Group photo of the survivors of Theresienstadt who were miraculously sent to Switzerland
Group photo of the survivors of Theresienstadt who were miraculously sent to Switzerland
Bertha Weinschenk sitting on a park bench between two other survivors
Bertha Weinschenk sitting on a park bench between two other survivors
Façade of the synagogue on Essenwein St., Nuremberg that was destroyed in the Kristallnacht pogrom in 1938
Façade of the synagogue on Essenwein St., Nuremberg that was destroyed in the Kristallnacht pogrom in 1938
Interior of the synagogue on Essenwein St., Nuremberg after the Kristallnacht pogrom in 1938
Interior of the synagogue on Essenwein St., Nuremberg after the Kristallnacht pogrom in 1938
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