Jews in Latvia (museum)
Muzejs „Ebreji Latvijā” | |
History museum | |
| Director | Iļja Ļenskis (2008–present) |
|---|---|
| Website | www |
The Museum “Jews in Latvia” (
The current director since 2008 is Latvian historian Iļja Ļenskis.[2][3]
History
The museum was founded by a group of
Exhibition
The museum's exhibition consists of three parts – Jews in Latvia until the year 1918, Jews in Latvia in the years 1918 – 1941 and Jews in Nazi-occupied Latvia. The exhibition opens with the early period of Latvian Jewish history – from the arrival of Jews on Latvian territory in the 16th century until the 19th century. The exhibition speaks about social, economic, political, intellectual and religious life, the legal status of Jews as well as their participation in various historical events in Latvia. The third hall is devoted to the tragic events of the Holocaust on Latvian territory. A special chapter is devoted to the honourable deeds of those Latvian citizens who rescued Jews from nearly complete extermination.
The French film maker Philippe Labrune saw a photograph in the Jewish Museum of 4 women and a girl and began an investigation to out who the girl was. He discovered that she was Sorella Epstein and a French documentary was made on the investigation. It was broadcast in France in 2015.[5]
Building
The museum is located in the building of the Riga Jewish community, a historical building which was once a Jewish club and theatre. It was built in the years 1913-1914 by the architects Edmund von Trompowsky and Paul Mandelstamm.[6] Here in 1926 a Jewish theatre troupe started its performances, and thus the building was renovated. Various public organisations and a Jewish library were also located in this building. Jewish celebrations were often organised here– weddings, lectures, shows and meetings. During the German occupation of Latvia (1941-1944), a German officers' club was located here. During Soviet times the building served as a place of political education: various ideological events, as well as congresses of the Communist Party, were held there. The building was given back to the Jewish community in the early 1990s. Currently, the building is a state-protected architectural monument.
Collection of museum
The collection of the museum “Jews in Latvia” is the foundation on which the museum bases its organisation of exhibitions and research. Currently, the museum has around 14,000 items. Of these items, more than 5,000 make up the main stock, which is included in the Latvian National collection of museums. The collection consists of documents, photos, books and objects. A collection of memoirs from the 19th-20th century, a plentiful collection of family photos and materials of various Jewish organisations in the interwar period are to be noted separately.
See also
References
- ^ Jewish community: history, tragedy, renascence
- ^ "Iļja Ļenskis". Sarunu festivāls LAMPA (in Latvian). Retrieved 2020-01-17.
- ^ "Holocaust atrocity remembered in Rumbula". Public Broadcasting of Latvia. 2019-11-19. Retrieved 2020-01-17.
- ^ "Catalogue of Latvian museums". Archived from the original on 2016-04-25. Retrieved 2014-07-22.
- ^ "A la recherche de Sorella Epstein". Le Monde.fr (in French). 2015-03-07. Retrieved 2022-04-14.
- ^ Riga Jewish Community
External links
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