Jewish Museum of Westphalia restitutes prayer book to rightful heiress

After more than 80 years, Susanne Woodin (90) from Great Britain has recovered a valuable prayer book from her family estate: The "Machsor al kol ha-Shanah" is a prayer book for the whole year and dates back to 1851. Since 1991 it had been part of the collection of the Jewish Museum of Westphalia. As part of a provenance research project funded by the German Lost Art Foundation, the museum was able to identify the rightful heir and return the prayer book of her grandfather Hermann Schlome (1857-1942) to her.

3. February 2021

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German Lost Art Foundation

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Germany
Phone:  +49 (0) 391 727 763 0
E-mail:  kontakt@kulturgutverluste.de
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German Lost Art Foundation Berlin Branch Office

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Berlin
Phone: +49 (0) 391 727 763 0
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The Help Desk offers advice and assistance to victims of the Nazi regime and their descendants on questions relating to Nazi theft of cultural property. Serving as a central and initial low-threshold point of contact in Germany, it is aimed in particular at people whose place of residence is outside Germany and who are unfamiliar with German procedures, especially in connection with cultural federalism. The Help Desk seeks to provide support in taking initial steps as well as providing further contacts and information. We will also be happy to help initiate discussions with museums and other institutions.

German Lost Art Foundation, Branch Office
Dr. Susanne Meyer-Abich
Head of Help Desk

Seydelstr. 18
10117 Berlin

Germany
Phone: +49 (0) 391 727 763 0
E-mail: helpdesk@kulturgutverluste.de

Hermann Schlome was a timber merchant and came from a Jewish Orthodox merchant family in Janowitz in the former Prussian province of Posen (today Janowiec/Poland). His marriage to Auguste Frost (1862-1942) produced sons Paul, Arthur and Julius and daughter Clara. Presumably immediately after World War I, the children moved to Berlin. Around 1933, Hermann and his wife also moved to Berlin. Hermann had a particularly close relationship with his granddaughter Susanne Schlome (born 1930), the daughter of his eldest son Paul.

On September 1, 1942, Hermann and Auguste Schlome were transported to Theresienstadt on the "54th Alterstransport" [old-age transport] to Theresienstadt. Hermann Schlome died in Theresienstadt on September 16, 1942, and his wife Auguste was murdered in Treblinka in early October 1942. Many other family members lost their lives to the Shoah. Susanne's father Paul died in Riga on October 22, 1942.

Hermann's granddaughter Susanne escaped persecution on July 4, 1939, by a Kindertransport [child's transport] to Great Britain and was taken in by Mr and Mrs Handslip from the small village of Werham, where she spent her life. She remained in correspondence with her mother in Berlin until 1942, after which her parents were deported to Riga. Susanne Woodin has only a few mementos of her family left.

The Jewish Museum of Westphalia is researching a number of Judaica and books from the collection as part of the long-term project. As a result of the research to date, several heirs have already been identified and restitutions have been made.