Did This Concentration Camp Pendant Belong to Anne Frank’s Cousin?
A pendant found at the Sobibor Nazi death camp in Poland may have belonged to a doomed relative of famed diarist Anne Frank.
The tiny unique pendant was dropped by its owner or someone in possession of the jewelry on the “Pathway to Heaven,” the path along which Jewish victims were forced to walk to the gas chambers, JTA reported.
It bears the words “Mazal Tov” written in Hebrew on one side and on the other side the Hebrew letter “ה” for God’s name as well three Stars of David — and the owner’s birthday.
Researchers believe it belonged to Karoline Cohn, who came from Frankfurt like Frank, who also owned a similar pendant, suggesting a possible family tie.
The pendant likely fell through the floorboards of the horrifying walkway and remained buried until it was discovered last fall by archeologists.
“The moving story of Karoline Cohn is symbolic of the shared fate of the Jews murdered in the camp. It is important to tell the story, so that we never forget,” said Yoram Haimi, an archaeologist from the Israel Antiquities Authority.
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we need 500 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Our Goal: 500 gifts during our Passover Pledge Drive!