The Museum’s collections have, to a great extent, been built up thanks to gifts and donations. At present, the Museum holds a considerable collection of photographs, postcards, letters from the front, diplomas, certificates and so forth. This collection beautifully illustrates the daily life, suffering and hopes of Jews from the late nineteenth to mid twentieth century.
Today, the main collection of the Museum comprises an important collection of Judaica, around thirty paintings by famous Russian and Jewish artists, over fifty posters from the late nineteenth to early twentieth century, the Akselrod family collection (graphics and oil paintings), photographs, various documents, unique domestic items and much more.
Each time an object is submitted to the Museum, an interview is recorded on camera. All documents and photographs donated are included in the Museum’s exhibitions and research projects. Where possible, they are put on display, and become scientific material for research works, books and scientific papers on the theme of the Jewish presence and participation in the history of the Russian Empire and USSR.
The Museum collection contains over 300 documents connected with the participation of Jews in revolutionary and socio-political activities. These include dossiers on secret agents, denunciations, and secret circulars from the Warsaw Governorate.
You now stand before one of these.
This archive came to us courtesy of Sergei Natanovich Bulkin.
A letter from Slupsk, Poland, came to Moscow for Rosa Belousova.
The letter was written, on the 22/04/1947 by Leokardiya Cherniavskaya.
L. Chernjavskaya describes the last days of Susie, Jewish girl from Lviv, who escaped with her husband and child from the Nazis in Luninets. Her husband became a partisan, and daughter Ruth was still small. Foreseeing a quick death, Susie wrote to her husband, the last letter.
Theatrical group, 1924, Lyady.
The director (centre of photo in a white shirt) – repressed in 1937, shot in 1942 – was an engineer in a factory making New Year tree decorations. His name has not been preserved.
Photograph courtesy of Boris Vladimirovich Bylinin