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VHM Artifact Highlight: The Work of Hermann Hirsch

February 20th, 2017– Hermann Hirsch was born on July 4, 1861 in Mönchengladbach, Germany; he was the youngest of eight children born to Moritz and Rosetta Hirsch. Moritz worked in the cloth industry, and when Herman was three, the family moved to Köln. When Hermann was twelve, his father passed

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High School Students Talk with Refugees

February 9th, 2017– On Tuesday, the Museum hosted a program which brought together Godwin High School art students, and former refugees who came to the U.S. through Commonwealth Catholic Charities (CCC). The collaboration began last Fall when Megan was approached by Dana Morris, a Godwin High School art teacher. Mrs.

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VHM Artifact Highlight: Susanne’s Doll

February 6th, 2017– Susanne Hirt (nèe Hirsch) was born in Berlin, Germany on August 1, 1913. She was the youngest child of Joseph—a businessman—and Dorothea Hirsch—a caregiver. Susanne grew up with her older half siblings, Alexander and Rosetta, and her older sister, Anna Margarete, and near extended family like her

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Silver Yad Featured

VHM Artifact Highlight: Silver Yad

January 23rd, 2017– A yad, or a Torah pointer, is a ritual pointer used by readers to keep their place during Torah readings. Yad—a Hebrew word—translates to “hand,” and the Torah pointer functions as such. In Judaic tradition, it is considered disrespectful to touch the Torah, a sacred religious text,

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VHM Artifact Highlight: Pre-War Menorah

January 2nd, 2017– The menorah is an important symbol of Judaism that can be traced to the early history of the religion. The first menorah appeared in the First Temple built by King Solomon. The original was a six-branched lamp created by the artisan Bazalel. After the fall of the

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The Virginia Holocaust Museum Archives

The Archives at the Virginia Holocaust Museum houses approximately 10,000 documents, photographs, and artifacts. The collection also contains over 180 record groups for Holocaust survivors who settled in the Commonwealth of Virginia, each of which details the experiences of these local survivors. Acquired from variety of sources—including survivors, liberators, and

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Sydnor Collection

Working for the Office of Special Investigations, Dr. Charles W. Sydnor presented testimony and compiled detailed analyses for prosecutors as part of deportation hearings against 21 separate alleged Nazi perpetrators living in the United States. Throughout the 2000s, Dr. Sydnor donated over 60 linear feet of documents from his time

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Collection 4

TEST4 Dolphins have a streamlined fusiform body, adapted for fast swimming. The tail fin, called the fluke, is used for propulsion while the pectoral fins, together with the entire tail section, provide directional control. The dorsal fin, in those species that have one, provides stability while swimming. Though varying by

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