Object numberM2018/060:001
DescriptionWooden chest in which Eugenie (Genia) Lehrer (nee Weissager) hid, when needed, during the eight months that she lived with her brother Julek after their parents were murdered.
Eugenie was born 24 June 1918 in Jaroslaw (Galicia region), Poland to Izak Weissager and Beila Weissager (nee Mandel). Eugenie grew up in Lemberg/Lvov, where she studied singing at the Conservatorium of Music. She was the youngest of four children - brother, Julek (Julian) and two sisters, Leontyna, 18 months older than her, and Rozalia, 12 years older. Both perished in the Holocaust.
Julek had the trunk in his apartment in Stryj, Poland. He was a photographer who had false identity papers, purporting to show that he was not Jewish. He went out to work each day while his sister stayed hidden in his apartment. Julek bought a small dog, a fox terrier, as a companion and hoped that its sounds would mask Eugenie’s footsteps during the day. The apartment block was occupied by Ukrainian families, hostile to Jews. Eugenie and Julek’s situation felt precarious. The trunk was where she hid when callers came; newspapers were used to keep the lid of it ajar to allow air flow. The trunk was kept by Julek until his death in 1995, after which his sister inherited it.
Eugenie was born 24 June 1918 in Jaroslaw (Galicia region), Poland to Izak Weissager and Beila Weissager (nee Mandel). Eugenie grew up in Lemberg/Lvov, where she studied singing at the Conservatorium of Music. She was the youngest of four children - brother, Julek (Julian) and two sisters, Leontyna, 18 months older than her, and Rozalia, 12 years older. Both perished in the Holocaust.
Julek had the trunk in his apartment in Stryj, Poland. He was a photographer who had false identity papers, purporting to show that he was not Jewish. He went out to work each day while his sister stayed hidden in his apartment. Julek bought a small dog, a fox terrier, as a companion and hoped that its sounds would mask Eugenie’s footsteps during the day. The apartment block was occupied by Ukrainian families, hostile to Jews. Eugenie and Julek’s situation felt precarious. The trunk was where she hid when callers came; newspapers were used to keep the lid of it ajar to allow air flow. The trunk was kept by Julek until his death in 1995, after which his sister inherited it.
Subjecthiding
Object nametrunks
Materialwood
Dimensions
- width: 1030.00 mm
height: 675.00 mm
depth: 620.00 mm
Credit lineSydney Jewish Museum Collection, Donated by Prof Gus Lehrer