Kiddush cup (made of brass) used in the Wegscheid DP camp (Austria), C. 1945.
Engraved on the side are three Stars of David.
The Wegscheid DP camp (Wegscheid), also known by its official name Camp 601, was one of the most significant displaced persons camps in Austria after World War II. It was located near the city of Linz, in the American-controlled zone. Originally, the buildings had served as a Nazi labor camp during the war. After the liberation in 1945, the American army converted the site into a DP camp. The camp housed thousands of Jewish Holocaust survivors (mainly from Poland, Romania, and Hungary) alongside non-Jewish refugees from Eastern Europe who fled Soviet occupation. At its peak, thousands of people lived there simultaneously. Despite the overcrowding and harsh physical conditions in the wooden barracks, the survivors turned Wegscheid into a vibrant cultural and political center: schools, kindergartens, and even a theater and sports teams were established. The camp became a hub of Zionist youth movements, where survivors prepared for immigration to the Land of Israel, studied Hebrew, and trained in agriculture. Synagogues and religious institutions also operated in the camp, offering support to religious survivors seeking to rebuild their lives. Wegscheid became known as one of the key transit points for the Bricha movement—many Jewish refugees arrived there from Eastern Europe as part of their illegal journey toward the Mediterranean ports and from there to the Land of Israel. The American authorities largely turned a blind eye to this movement, making the camp a strategic point. The camp operated as a center for Jewish displaced persons until the early 1950s (C. 1952–1953).
Height: 17 cm. Stains. Good condition.
