Object numberM2018/008:047
DescriptionIn March 1938, Austria was annexed by Nazi Germany in the “Anschluss”. From May 1938, the racist Nuremberg laws applied in Austria, and Austrian Jews were steadily ostracised from their societies during the process of “Aryanisation.” This tension came to a climax in the Kristallnacht pogrom from 9th-10th November.
In the meantime, Hardy Brothers, a British jewellery-making firm, offer young Leo Steiner from Vienna employment in Sydney, Australia as a jewellery mounter in July 1938. However, the Gestapo threaten to arrest Jews issued with travel documents who do not leave within a short time. Whilst Leo’s Australian landing permit is pending, it is therefore prudent to seek temporary refuge in a third country. Before he is discharged from his erstwhile firm Vienna Art Designs, Leo’s employer Oscar Fastlich writes that his stay in Switzerland is necessary for business. In July, Leo moves to Zurich on a temporary stay visa, leaving his parents, Adolf and Hermine, and brother Paul, behind in Vienna.
Once established in Australia, Leo keeps in contact with a wide network of family and friends. This letter is written by a woman named Nina, whom Leo befriended aboard the Oronsay, the ship that conveyed him from Toulon, France, to Sydney. Nina disembarked sometime later than Leo, in New Zealand. In this letter, Nina comments that she thinks the war will be over soon and that there is no use worrying in the meantime. She also asks Leo why he has not written to her for a while. Leo’s draft response is enclosed, where he tells Nina that he has been very busy in his efforts to secure Australian landing permits for his family members. Ultimately, Leo's efforts to obtain permits for his family were unsuccessful, and all three of his immediate family members perished during the war.
In the meantime, Hardy Brothers, a British jewellery-making firm, offer young Leo Steiner from Vienna employment in Sydney, Australia as a jewellery mounter in July 1938. However, the Gestapo threaten to arrest Jews issued with travel documents who do not leave within a short time. Whilst Leo’s Australian landing permit is pending, it is therefore prudent to seek temporary refuge in a third country. Before he is discharged from his erstwhile firm Vienna Art Designs, Leo’s employer Oscar Fastlich writes that his stay in Switzerland is necessary for business. In July, Leo moves to Zurich on a temporary stay visa, leaving his parents, Adolf and Hermine, and brother Paul, behind in Vienna.
Once established in Australia, Leo keeps in contact with a wide network of family and friends. This letter is written by a woman named Nina, whom Leo befriended aboard the Oronsay, the ship that conveyed him from Toulon, France, to Sydney. Nina disembarked sometime later than Leo, in New Zealand. In this letter, Nina comments that she thinks the war will be over soon and that there is no use worrying in the meantime. She also asks Leo why he has not written to her for a while. Leo’s draft response is enclosed, where he tells Nina that he has been very busy in his efforts to secure Australian landing permits for his family members. Ultimately, Leo's efforts to obtain permits for his family were unsuccessful, and all three of his immediate family members perished during the war.
Production placeChristchurch, New Zealand
Production date 1939-09-14 - 1939-09-14 1939-09-26 - 1939-09-26
SubjectHolocaust, refugees, refugees, refugee experiences in Australia, family life, visa application, Visa Refusal, landing permit
Object nameletters
Dimensions
- letter length: 201.00 mm
letter width: 166.00 mm
letter (draft) length: 203.00 mm
letter (draft) width: 125.00 mm
envelope length: 89.00 mm
envelope width: 117.00 mm
Language
- English
Credit lineSydney Jewish Museum Collection, Donated by Pauline Shavit