A knife for opening letters with a Jewish figure at the top, a golden Star of David on a black background, and an engraving: "Zydowska Samopomoc Spaleczna w Debicy" - "Jewish Social Self-Help in Dębica 22.5.1941". Extremely rare!
Jews started settling in Dębica as early as 1690. A Jewish community was established in the city. The community set up in the city a Chevra Kadisha, a Gemach fund, "Hachnasat Kala" and a "Bikur Cholim" society. By the end of the 19th century, several thousand Jews lived in Dębica. In the early 1930s, the movements of the General Zionists, Mizrachi, Hitachdut, Agudat Yisrael and the youth movements Hashomer Hatzair, Akiva, Beitar, Gordonia and Hanoar HaZioni were represented in it. The last two also ran training kibbutzim in preparation for aliyah to Eretz Israel. Immediately with the outbreak of the war on September 1, 1939, the city was bombed, and some of its Jews tried to flee east to the Russian lines, but without much success and only a few escaped into the Soviet Union, others fled to the surrounding villages. On September 8 the Germans entered the town. In November, a Judenrat was established and Jews were forced to work in various forced labor. During 1940 the harassment and supervision of the movement of Jews increased, and they were required to wear a white armband with a blue or green Star of David. In June, Jews were kidnapped for the first time to work on the construction of the Pustków concentration camp which was established nearby. In 1941, the concentration of the city's Jews and its surroundings began in the most neglected neighborhood in the city that was intended to be a ghetto, while evicting the Polish residents and establishing wooden barracks to absorb a much larger number of residents than the place allowed. On July 21, 1942, the ghetto was surrounded by SS men and an Aktion took place in the ghetto during which all the Jews were concentrated and their work permits were checked. At the same time, SS men went out to look for Jews who were hiding during the concentration, anyone who was caught was murdered in the city's cemetery. Of the Jews who were concentrated during the Aktion, 200 were sent to the forest and shot into pits. Groups of men were also sent to work in aircraft factories in Rzeszów and in the Pustków camp. Another 2,000 Jews were sent to the Belzec extermination camp. After the Aktion the ghetto was defined as a labor camp in which only 600 Jews remained.
Items from the Debica ghetto are extremely rare!
Length: 21 cm. Maximum width: 4 cm. Very good condition.
