Object numberM1991/041:003
DescriptionYellow cloth Star of David badge, with the word 'Jude' (German for 'Jew') printed in the centre. Made to be sewn onto the outer clothing to publicly identify and humiliate Jews. It was worn by the donor, Lothar Cohn who survived Katscher, Ottmachu, Wolfsberg and Johannsdorf concentration camps.
Dr Lothar Cohn was born 13 February 1913 in Laurahütte (Siemianowice) (Germany, now Poland). He lived with his parents: Hermann, and Anna Cohn (neé Rapp) and sister Lotte. He died in Sydney on 27 October 2004.
Lotte left for Australia in February 1940.
On 8 May 1940, their small community was ordered to be resettled in Jaworzno. After his arrival he met two sisters—Ida (Duska, aged 20) and her younger sister Anna (Dziunka, 18) Jankier. At the end of October 1940 recruitments began for labour camps. He was interned in a camp near Johannesdorf. He had his own room and a well-equipped surgery next door. Correspondence was permitted. Inmates could receive parcels. Everything was censored and searched. He returned to Jaworzno in March 1941. From September 1941, all Jews were required to wear the Star of David. On 3 July 1942 he was ordered to report to a Polish camp in Friedland. On 4 July he said goodbye to his parents, not realising it was to be their last goodbye. He arrived at the camp on 5 July 1942. His job was to treat the sick and dispense medication. “I had a lot of spare time in which I was bored stiff” (Cohn, p. 11). He was the only Jew in the camp. Even though it was compulsory, he hardly ever wore his star in the camp. Fluency in German and Aryan looks helped Lothar to become friendly not only with the Commandant, but also his assistant, Polish inmates and, also some of the German guards.
He left Friedland in November 1943. He was transferred to another camp—Ottmachu. He did not work as a doctor in this camp. In December 1943 he was transferred to a camp in Katscher. It held 800 Polish prisoners. Inmates worked in the fields or in munitions factories during the week but on Sundays they staged plays and had little concerts. From two girls in the office (who were able to listen to the radio) he was kept informed about important events—the Allied invasion of Italy and France and the razing of the Warsaw Ghetto.
On 22 March 1945, the camp was evacuated. They were liberated by “a bunch of Russian louts, bandits and robbers …. They took my watch and fountain pen and my little valise” (Cohn, p. 24). He made his way back to Sosnowitz and then Laurahütte. Arriving in April 1945. Rampant antisemitism and compulsory army service persuaded him to leave Poland on 26 July 1945. He learned that his “two girls” had been incarcerated in Auschwitz but had been evacuated to Germany. He decided to look for them. Dziunka never gave up hope that he was alive. She made inquiries with various organisations (AJDC). She wrote in the capacity of his wife, but there is no evidence that they were married. She tracked him down in Stuttgart. She immediately sent a telegram to his sister in Australia and this proved to be the basis for a successful application for landing permits for them.
History of the yellow star:
Since the Middle Ages Jews had been intermittently forced to wear markings that separated them from the general population. Signalling a return to such discrimination in Nazi occupied Poland in October 1939, the Jews of Wloclawek were forced to wear a yellow badge. Similar initiatives occurred throughout occupied Poland, and on the 23 November 1939, a general order was issued that all Polish Jews over the age of 11 wear a white armband with a blue Star of David. In September 1941, the Nazis introduced a yellow star in Germany. This Jewish badge became the distinguishing emblem that Jews in Nazi Germany and Nazi-occupied countries were forced to wear to enable their debasement and identification as Jews.
This regulation required all Jews over the age of six to wear a yellow, six-pointed star, the size of a fist, on the left side of the breast, with ‘Jude’ inscribed on it in black. The date of its application, as well as the word embossed on it, varied across Nazi-occupied territories. In occupied France, the decree to wear the yellow star inscribed with ‘Juif’ (Jew), came into effect on 3 June 1942; in the Netherlands, the yellow star was inscribed with Jood (Jew), issued on 29 April 1942, and in Bulgaria, the distinctive sign for a Jew/Jewess took the form of a yellow and black button sewn onto clothing, issued in August 1942. In some countries like Hungary, Romania and Moldavia Jews wore yellow stars without any lettering. The distinctive mark imposed on Jews became an integral part of the preparation for the Final Solution.
Dr Lothar Cohn was born 13 February 1913 in Laurahütte (Siemianowice) (Germany, now Poland). He lived with his parents: Hermann, and Anna Cohn (neé Rapp) and sister Lotte. He died in Sydney on 27 October 2004.
Lotte left for Australia in February 1940.
On 8 May 1940, their small community was ordered to be resettled in Jaworzno. After his arrival he met two sisters—Ida (Duska, aged 20) and her younger sister Anna (Dziunka, 18) Jankier. At the end of October 1940 recruitments began for labour camps. He was interned in a camp near Johannesdorf. He had his own room and a well-equipped surgery next door. Correspondence was permitted. Inmates could receive parcels. Everything was censored and searched. He returned to Jaworzno in March 1941. From September 1941, all Jews were required to wear the Star of David. On 3 July 1942 he was ordered to report to a Polish camp in Friedland. On 4 July he said goodbye to his parents, not realising it was to be their last goodbye. He arrived at the camp on 5 July 1942. His job was to treat the sick and dispense medication. “I had a lot of spare time in which I was bored stiff” (Cohn, p. 11). He was the only Jew in the camp. Even though it was compulsory, he hardly ever wore his star in the camp. Fluency in German and Aryan looks helped Lothar to become friendly not only with the Commandant, but also his assistant, Polish inmates and, also some of the German guards.
He left Friedland in November 1943. He was transferred to another camp—Ottmachu. He did not work as a doctor in this camp. In December 1943 he was transferred to a camp in Katscher. It held 800 Polish prisoners. Inmates worked in the fields or in munitions factories during the week but on Sundays they staged plays and had little concerts. From two girls in the office (who were able to listen to the radio) he was kept informed about important events—the Allied invasion of Italy and France and the razing of the Warsaw Ghetto.
On 22 March 1945, the camp was evacuated. They were liberated by “a bunch of Russian louts, bandits and robbers …. They took my watch and fountain pen and my little valise” (Cohn, p. 24). He made his way back to Sosnowitz and then Laurahütte. Arriving in April 1945. Rampant antisemitism and compulsory army service persuaded him to leave Poland on 26 July 1945. He learned that his “two girls” had been incarcerated in Auschwitz but had been evacuated to Germany. He decided to look for them. Dziunka never gave up hope that he was alive. She made inquiries with various organisations (AJDC). She wrote in the capacity of his wife, but there is no evidence that they were married. She tracked him down in Stuttgart. She immediately sent a telegram to his sister in Australia and this proved to be the basis for a successful application for landing permits for them.
History of the yellow star:
Since the Middle Ages Jews had been intermittently forced to wear markings that separated them from the general population. Signalling a return to such discrimination in Nazi occupied Poland in October 1939, the Jews of Wloclawek were forced to wear a yellow badge. Similar initiatives occurred throughout occupied Poland, and on the 23 November 1939, a general order was issued that all Polish Jews over the age of 11 wear a white armband with a blue Star of David. In September 1941, the Nazis introduced a yellow star in Germany. This Jewish badge became the distinguishing emblem that Jews in Nazi Germany and Nazi-occupied countries were forced to wear to enable their debasement and identification as Jews.
This regulation required all Jews over the age of six to wear a yellow, six-pointed star, the size of a fist, on the left side of the breast, with ‘Jude’ inscribed on it in black. The date of its application, as well as the word embossed on it, varied across Nazi-occupied territories. In occupied France, the decree to wear the yellow star inscribed with ‘Juif’ (Jew), came into effect on 3 June 1942; in the Netherlands, the yellow star was inscribed with Jood (Jew), issued on 29 April 1942, and in Bulgaria, the distinctive sign for a Jew/Jewess took the form of a yellow and black button sewn onto clothing, issued in August 1942. In some countries like Hungary, Romania and Moldavia Jews wore yellow stars without any lettering. The distinctive mark imposed on Jews became an integral part of the preparation for the Final Solution.
Subjectracial discrimination, antisemitism, Holocaust, stigma
Object nameyellow Star of David
Materialfibres (fabrics)
Dimensions
- whole width: 80.00 mm
height: 90.00 mm
Credit lineSydney Jewish Museum Collection, Donated by Dr Lothar Cohn