Object numberM2019/027:002
DescriptionTile fragment taken from the remains of the Auschwitz crematorium in 1968. It was given to John F. Coltheart, a Seventh-day Adventist minister, during his visit to Auschwitz in 1968.
Between 1965 and 1974, Coltheart was based in England and had oversight over all ministers within the church throughout northern Europe, including Poland. He was taken to the concentration camp by some of his Polish colleagues and was given the fragment by one of his Polish hosts who was aware that Coltheart was a ‘keen historian and archaeological collector’. Amongst his group was a minister who had been imprisoned in Auschwitz and another who had fled from his nearby home after refusing to attend school on the Sabbath.
After Coltheart’s death in 1974, his son Alvin Coltheart inherited his father’s archaeological and geological collections which included the two artefacts from Auschwitz.
Between 1965 and 1974, Coltheart was based in England and had oversight over all ministers within the church throughout northern Europe, including Poland. He was taken to the concentration camp by some of his Polish colleagues and was given the fragment by one of his Polish hosts who was aware that Coltheart was a ‘keen historian and archaeological collector’. Amongst his group was a minister who had been imprisoned in Auschwitz and another who had fled from his nearby home after refusing to attend school on the Sabbath.
After Coltheart’s death in 1974, his son Alvin Coltheart inherited his father’s archaeological and geological collections which included the two artefacts from Auschwitz.
Production placeAuschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp
Production date 1940 - 1945
Object namearchitectural features
Materialceramic, earthenware
Dimensions
- height: 140.00 mm
width: 50.00 mm
depth: 20.00 mm
Credit lineSydney Jewish Museum Collection, Donated by Alvin Coltheart