The Importance of Preserving Material Culture

Magnes co-founder, Rebecca Fromer, discusses the importance of preserving material culture.

During the political upheavals of the late 1960s and early 1970s, Jews fled their homes and communities in and around India, North Africa, and the former Ottoman Empire. As much of this material culture was being actively destroyed, artifacts from these communities were at risk of vanishing altogether. In response, Magnes co-founders Rebecca and Seymour Fromer, curator Ruth Eis, and volunteer Rabbi Bernard Kimmel traveled to these areas, sometimes at great personal risk, to collect and preserve these materials for future generations.

These unique objects were researched as part of the museum's multi-year Collection Access Project, which will enable the museum to dramatically improve the care, interpretation, and exhibition of the permanent collection.

This video was filmed as part of the Museum Loan Network's "Collecting Stories: Connecting Objects" Grant and the Journeys East, Patterns of Collecting exhibition:
http://dl.lib.brown.edu/mln/cswn/csco/
http://www.magnes.org/exhibits/east.htm

Alla Efimova, Magnes Chief Curator, interviewed Rebecca and Seymour Fromer and Ruth Eis on April 20, 2006 at the home of Ruth Eis in Oakland, CA. Filming by Perian Sully and editing by Casondra Sobieralski.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• Magnes
• museum
• history
• Jewish
• Judaica
• India
• Yemen
• North Africa
• Cochin
• Sephardic
• Diaspora

[BradBrassman]

Hello again, I looked this up and the source is Harris, R, (1986) Selling Hitler, Faber and Faber , London. Harris states that "it has been estimated that there are 50,000 collectors of Nazi memorabillia, most of whom are Americans, where most of the collectors, according to Charles Hamilton, are 40% Jewish. " However, you may be right in your assesment that these are seen as "Holocaust materials" as the authour concludes that such material is held as evidence of what happened in the 1940's

[magnesmuseum]

Much appreciated, Brad. Thanks!

[BradBrassman]

I studied the Interpretation of Items of Material Culture at University where I learned that, by far, the most prolific collecting of Nazi memorabillia is practised by Jews (something like 39%) Would you tend to agree with this? And do you think it is right therefore to preserve such items as a reminder of the Holocaust, or as items collected for their own sake?

[magnesmuseum]

It would be interesting to know the source of that statistic. I actually think it unlikely, though it may be accurate if one is referring to Holocaust materials, instead of Nazi memorabilia.

All items have a history attached to them, some more weighted than others. You can't separate the history from them. This is especially true for Holocaust materials, so there is often debate by Jewish groups about preservation of these sorts of items.

[BradBrassman]

P.S. You may also be interested in a book that was required reading on my course entitled, On Collecting, by Susan M. Pearce. This covers, as the title suggests, most aspects of collecting in the European tradition, with a very interesting essay on, Collections Deviant and Sinister, which paraphrases Harris and those individuals who collect Nazi memorabillia, which you would find interesting.