Shaved bald, dressed in rags, and tattooed with a number, prisoners tried to hold on to a sense of identity and dignity.
Like most women prisoners, sixteen-year-old Ruth Grunberger agonized over the loss of her hair.
Secreting metal fragments from her work in a factory, she fashioned a small comb—a promise of a future day when, once again, she would have hair, and freedom.” ©Musealia
One year ago, our social workers had the privilege of visiting the Museum of Jewish Heritage with our client, a Holocaust survivor, Ruth Mermelstein. Ruth gifted her comb to the museum to share her story with others.
Ruth is the author of the book: Beyond the Tracks.
Comb: Collection of the Museum of Jewish Heritage, gift of Ruth Mermelstein
