Representations of the Holocaust in the Jewish Museum in Kaliningrad

Abstract

In November 2018, the reconstructed synagogue was inaugurated in Kaliningrad (Russian Federation) on the site of the house of worship destroyed on the night of the pogrom of 1938, Kristallnacht. Since 2022, a small Jewish Museum has also opened in the active synagogue, the centerpiece of which is a thematically conceptualized permanent exhibition. In the following article, the initial situation, mission, and thematic expectations for the creation of the permanent exhibition are described. It was desired that it should have an identity-forming and identity-promoting effect on the Jews of the Kaliningrad congregation and the entire region. Furthermore, it should be educational and entertaining for the population and tourists of the area, but also represent a place of remembrance of the former Jewish life and the Holocaust for the Jewish visitors of the region. Subsequently, the chosen exhibition media are described, as well as the selection of narratives and their respective media implementation. The text also sheds light on the object from the perspective of Jewish cultural heritage: The Kaliningrad region is one of the Eastern European post-displacement areas in which German traces (including German-Jewish traces) are regarded as a dissonant heritage. The authorized heritage discourse does not accept the consequences of the Holocaust here and ignores the city’s Jewish heritage. How can Jewish cultural heritage be made visible under these conditions? How can the new museum contribute to a change?

Keywords

• kaliningrad
• museum
• core exhibition
• holocaust
• narrative
• jews