Israel’s national Holocaust museum recently opened a new conservation facility in Jerusalem, designed to preserve, restore, and store its extensive collection of artifacts and works of art. The museum, known as Yad Vashem, also serves as a research institution and a memorial center dedicated to Holocaust remembrance. With nearly a million visitors annually, Yad Vashem plays a crucial role in educating the public about the atrocities of the Holocaust.
The new conservation facility, named the David and Fela Shapell Family Collections Center, will house over 45,000 artifacts, 225 million pages of documents, and half a million photographs. Yad Vashem chairman Dani Dayan emphasized the importance of preserving these treasures in optimal conditions to ensure their longevity. The center’s state-of-the-art labs will enable experts to tackle challenging restoration projects, such as salvaging deteriorated film reels.
One notable restoration project involved a film canister brought by a family fleeing Austria in 1939. The film had degraded over time, presenting a significant conservation challenge. Through meticulous work using organic solvents and microscopes, conservators were able to recover images from the film, providing a glimpse into pre-World War II Europe. The successful restoration of such poignant artifacts highlights the significance of preserving historical materials from the Holocaust.
For descendants of Holocaust survivors, the recovery of these memories is invaluable. Orit Feldberg, granddaughter of a couple featured in a salvaged film reel, expressed gratitude for the preservation of her family’s story. These photographs not only honor the legacy of her relatives but also serve as a powerful reminder of the impact of the Holocaust on individual lives. The conservation efforts at Yad Vashem and other memorial sites play a vital role in ensuring that future generations continue to learn from the horrors of the past.
In a poignant example of preservation efforts, the Auschwitz Memorial recently completed a project to conserve thousands of children’s shoes found at the Nazi concentration camp. As the number of Holocaust survivors declines, the importance of conserving historical artifacts and documents grows. By investing in these restoration projects, institutions like Yad Vashem and Auschwitz Memorial are preserving critical pieces of history for future generations to learn from and remember.
