“Nazistowskie badania antropologiczne nad Żydami. Tarnów 1942” – a meeting with the author of the book, Prof. Leszek Hońdo

“Nazistowskie badania antropologiczne nad Żydami. Tarnów 1942” (“Nazi Anthropological Examinations on Jews. Tarnów 1942”) – a meeting with the author of the book, Prof. Leszek Hońdo

Led by: Jacek Stawiski

At the turn of March and April 1942 the Institut für Deutsche Ostarbeit led anthropological examinations on Jews living in Tarnów. These examinations were conducted on 565 people (and additional 13 representatives of the intelligentsia and beggars in order to compare the results), which were treated as nameless numbers needed to justify ideologic theories. The Germans wanted to prove that Jews were different both physically and spiritually from Germans, and to confirm their theory that the “final solution to the Jewish question” was possible only by separating Jews from other parts of the society. Not waiting for any test results, which were never provided (apart from preliminary descriptions), on June 10th, 1942 the Nazis began exterminating Jews in Tarnów. This book is an attempt to keep the memory of the examined people and save them from anonymity.

Prof. Leszek Hońdo – head of the Department of Culture of Jews in the Institute of Jewish Studies of the Jagiellonian University and head of the Committee of the History and Culture of Jews of the Polish Academy of Learning. His research focuses on Jewish culture, Jewish cemeteries, and Jewish thought. Author of books such as “Krakowski Memorbuch bejt hamidraszu Majera Dajana” (“The Krakow Memorbuch of the Majer Dajan Beit Ha Midrasz”), “Dom przedpogrzebowy przy Żydowskim Nowym Cmentarzu w Krakowie” (“Funeral Home of the New Jewish Cemetery in Krakow”), and “Hebrajska epigrafika nagrobna w Polsce” (“Hebrew Funerary Epigraphy in Poland”).

This is an accompanying event to the exhibition “The Cold Eye”.

Partner: Universitas Publishing Press

In Polish. Free admission.