Object numberM2007/061
DescriptionWedding dress worn by Ida Hammerman (nee Moses) when she married Bernhard Hammerman at the Great Synagogue, Sydney, on 4 March 1941. The dress is all lace (high quality machine made by Greig's Bridal Salon, Market Street, Sydney) with a high neckline, long sleeves and square-shaped train. Also part of the collection is the original box from Greig's.
Bernhard was born on 6 April 1913 in Berlin. His parents had moved from Kalush, Poland, to the German capital in 1909. His father came from a long line of furriers and set up a fur business into which Bernhard was inducted at a young age. Witnessing the violence in Germany, Bernhard left in 1933 for England. As a refugee, he was able to support himself through the fur trade he knew well. In 1937, the Home Office refused to extend his permit and the Jewish Refugee Committee came to his rescue by obtaining passage to New Zealand where a furrier's position was arranged. The boat stopped in Sydney and Bernhard instantly fell in love with the city and stayed. By 1939, he had set up his own furrier business, Hammerman Furs. That same year he managed to obtain visas for his parents and younger siblings, a timely escape from Hitler's Germany.
Ida, born 20 April 1914, was a fifth Generation Australian Jewess, one of six children born to Phillip and Esther Moses. Her father, a dentist, was part of a well-established Australian Jewish family, and her mother could trace her Australian roots back to the early colony and the convict era. Her maternal grandfather was Rabbi Tobias Boas, the first Rabbi in Adelaide (circa 1850). Ida lived in a Bondi home called ‘Denver’, with landscaped gardens, billiard room, expansive lounge areas and a ballroom. Phillip Moses, as President of the Zionist federation, organized a fund-raising Ball in his home for the Jewish National Fund (JNF). This is where Bernhard and Ida met and fell in love.
Bernhard was born on 6 April 1913 in Berlin. His parents had moved from Kalush, Poland, to the German capital in 1909. His father came from a long line of furriers and set up a fur business into which Bernhard was inducted at a young age. Witnessing the violence in Germany, Bernhard left in 1933 for England. As a refugee, he was able to support himself through the fur trade he knew well. In 1937, the Home Office refused to extend his permit and the Jewish Refugee Committee came to his rescue by obtaining passage to New Zealand where a furrier's position was arranged. The boat stopped in Sydney and Bernhard instantly fell in love with the city and stayed. By 1939, he had set up his own furrier business, Hammerman Furs. That same year he managed to obtain visas for his parents and younger siblings, a timely escape from Hitler's Germany.
Ida, born 20 April 1914, was a fifth Generation Australian Jewess, one of six children born to Phillip and Esther Moses. Her father, a dentist, was part of a well-established Australian Jewish family, and her mother could trace her Australian roots back to the early colony and the convict era. Her maternal grandfather was Rabbi Tobias Boas, the first Rabbi in Adelaide (circa 1850). Ida lived in a Bondi home called ‘Denver’, with landscaped gardens, billiard room, expansive lounge areas and a ballroom. Phillip Moses, as President of the Zionist federation, organized a fund-raising Ball in his home for the Jewish National Fund (JNF). This is where Bernhard and Ida met and fell in love.
Production placeSydney, New South Wales, Australia
Production date 1941 - 1941
Object namewedding objects
Materialfibres (fabrics)
Credit lineSydney Jewish Museum Collection, Donated by Mr Toby Hammerman