Watercolor portrait with frame of a Polish resistance member recovered by her family
Extent and Medium
overall: Height: 5.000 inches (12.7 cm) | Width: 4.000 inches (10.16 cm)
Archival History
The watercolor portrait was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2014 by Marilyn Stiles on behalf of the Estate of Wesley Zineski.
Acquisition
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of the Estate of Wesley Zineski
Funding Note: The cataloging of this artifact has been supported by a grant from the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany.
Scope and Content
Watercolor portrait of Janina Zyzniewska preserved by her son Wieslaw and her mother Wilhemina Jezierska. The Zyzniewskis were a Catholic family from Łódź, Poland, who were active in the resistance organized to oppose the German occupation. Wieslaw and his mother Janina were arrested by the Gestapo in February 1942 for their political activities and sent to Radogoszcz prison. In October 1942, they were sent to Auschwitz concentration camp, where Janina died in January 1943. Wieslaw was sent to Buchenwald in March 1943 where he was liberated by the US Army in April 1945.
Conditions Governing Access
No restrictions on access
Conditions Governing Reproduction
Restrictions on use. Copyright may be retained by the Estate of Wesley Zineski.
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
a. Small watercolor portrait of an older woman. b-d. Wooden frame and backing removed from portait.
Subjects
- World War, 1939-1945--Prisoners and prisons, Polish.
- World War, 1939-1945--Underground movements--Poland--Personal narratives.
- Jews--Poland--Łódź--Biography.
- Women concentration camp inmates--Poland--Biography.
- Poland--History--Occupation, 1939-1945.
- Political prisoners--Poland--Biography.
- Concentration camp inmates--Poland--Biography.
- Concentration camp inmates--Germany--Biography.
Genre
- Art
- Object