The Auschwitz Museum considers EveryOne Group’s proposal to protect the metal sign over the entrance gate.
After the directors of Auschwitz Museum announced the news yesterday that the metal sign stolen on December 18th had been found and would be returned to its place over the entrance gate EveryOne Group wrote an urgent letter to the director and several members of the Auschwitz International Council.
“Some of the activists of our organization”, say the co-presidents Roberto Malini, Matteo Pegoraro and Dario Picciau, “are Holocaust scholars who have worked for many years promoting Holocaust remembrance and the education of younger generations. For some time we have been inviting those in charge of museum-memorials not to underestimate the risks of acts of vandalism and theft, because as well as the evil of Neo-Nazism, which is spreading along with the intolerant Right throughout the European Union, there is now a flourishing market for Holocaust “memorabilia”.
When we heard of the Auschwitz museum’s intentions, we sent an alternative project to the management – that is, to install an identical copy of the sign over the entrance gate and keep the original in a protected exhibition place, which will still allow the visitors to see the sign”.
This morning the head of the research department of the museum, Dr. Piotr Setkiewicz answered EveryOne Group’s letter.
"Thank you very much for your letter. Of course this is a continuous dilemma: should we meet expectations of visitors and show them the original gate or to replace it by the copy? Perhaps for security reasons it would be better to keep the gate safe and locked but as we know some people have already protested against the idea of replacing the gate".
However, after EveryOne Group’s proposal, the idea of protecting the original sign has again been considered:
"The final decision will be taken by our director Dr Piotr Cywinski together with the Museum's advisory broad (the Auschwitz International Council)".
Before the Council meeting EveryOne will send Dr. Piotr Setkiewicz, the Director Piotr Cywinski and the council members a project in 3D illustrating the design for a safe and easily accessible exhibition space.
“We are pleased the Council members are considering our project,” say Malini, Pegoraro and Picciau, “and we are sure they will find it a suitable solution which will prevent the original sign being damaging or disappearing once again. Dr. Setkeiwicz is aware that the retrieval of the sign by the police was practically a miracle, but in any case it has been cut into three pieces and will need restoration work doing to it.
Our appeal is also being supported by the Jewish community and many Holocaust survivors, who more than anybody else fear that the evidence of the genocide will be destroyed by Holocaust negationists, neo-Nazis or by being left out in all weathers (seeing it is made from perishable materials).
After the encouraging reply from the museum, we have set to work - using the most up-to-date technology in 3D animation - in order to give our project a visual shape and show the Council how the sign may be protected without concealing it from visitors, indeed allowing them to see the details of the sign and the writing “Arbeit Macht Frei” (Work sets your free) from closer up.
In the picture one of the draft models presented by Everyone Group.
