Concentration camp uniform pants worn by a prisoner

Blue and white striped uniform pants from Gross-Rosen concentration camp. Upon entry into camp, prisoners’ clothes were often confiscated, and they were issued uniforms. Men received a cap, pants, and a jacket, while women received a dress or skirt with a jacket and kerchief for their head. Prisoners received an identification number, which was often paired with a color-coded triangular badge. Red was for political prisoners, and the “P” on the badge indicates the prisoner was Polish. Most uniforms were made in larger camps such as Dachau, Sachsenhausen, and Ravensbrück, and were then continuously altered for fit by prisoners as their bodies deteriorated physically. By the time Gross-Rosen was established in 1941, blue and gray prisoner uniforms had become standard issue in the concentration camp system. Gross-Rosen was originally a subcamp of Sachsenhausen concentration camp, but was designated as an autonomous camp in 1941. Initially, prisoners constructed the camp and performed hard labor at the nearby granite quarry. Later, the camp expanded to encompass approximately 97 subcamps, and a network of armaments production facilities that utilized forced labor. Camp authorities often beat and abused prisoners while they worked. Prisoners were forced to sleep on vermin infested straw sacks, and were fed watery soup and miniscule portions of bread with a little margarine or horse sausage. In early February 1945, the camp was evacuated ahead of approaching Soviet forces. Many prisoners died during the evacuations, due to lack of food and water. Approximately 120,000 prisoners passed through Gross-Rosen, and 40,000 perished.