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Obj. ID: 53375
Memorials
  Witnesses Wall in the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Houston, TX, USA, 2019

© Samuel Gruber, Photographer: Gruber, Samuel D., 2023

Name of Monument
Witnesses: The Community of Houston Survivors (Holocaust Survivors Wall)

Who/What is Commemorated?
Holocaust Survivors who settled in the Houston area

Description 
The convex wall is made of thin slabs of Jerusalem limestone. It is located on the second level of the Holocaust Museum Houston in front of the entrance to the Albert and Ethel Herzstein Theater. The wall consists of twelve courses of smooth rectangular slabs, meant to look like sold blocks. Stones are inscribed with names of survivors from the fourth course from the top until the third course from the bottom – a total of seven courses. Most stones are rectangular with a width twice their height. On these are inscribed two columns each with four names. Mixed in are square blocks, each with four names. In all, more the 1000 names are listed.
In front of the wall is a metal stand with a titled inscribed panel that explains in general terms – in English and Spanish – the plight, suffering and survival of those named.

Inscriptions

The metal stand in front of the wall bears identical inscriptions in English and Spanish.

In English: 

The community of Houston Survivors

We honor our survivors who made their home in Houston and surrounding areas. They survived the Holocaust in Nazi concentration in slave labor camps, in ghettos and hiding places. Some lived as non Jews or fought in partisan groups, while others, due to political events, found themselves displaced and had to endure harsh conditions. Only a few found safety in accepting countries.
While the Holocaust refers specifically to the systematic persecution and annihilation of the Jews, we also honor the non-Jews in our community who were victims of Nazi aggression.
Holocaust survivors inspire us with their strength, their courage, and their perseverance. They are proof of the indomitable human spirit.

In Spanish:

La comunidad de Sobrevivientes de Houston

Honramos a nuestros sobrevivientes que han hecho de Houston y sus alrededores su hogar. Ellos sobrevivieron el Holocausto en campos de concentración y de trabajos forzados nazis, guetos y en la clandestinidad. Algunos vivieron pasando como no judíos o lucharon en grupos partisanos. Mientras que otros, debido a los eventos políticos, se vieron desplazados y tuvieron que vivir bajo duras condiciones para sobrevivir. Sólo unos pocos encontraron refugio en los países que los recibieron.
Mientras que "el Holocausto" se refiere específicamente a la persecución sistamática y la aniquilacion de los judíos, también honramos a los no judéos en nuestra comunidad que fueron víctimas de la aggressión nazi.
Los sobrevientes del Holocausto nos inspiran con su fuerza, coraje y perseverancia Son una prueba de lo indómito del espiritu humano.

Commissioned by

to be determined

Summary and Remarks
Remarks

10 image(s)

sub-set tree:  

Name/Title
Witnesses Wall in the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Houston, TX, USA | Unknown
Object Detail
Monument Setting
Museum
{"13":"A Holocaust memorial permanently installed within a history, art, or Holocaust Remembrance Museum (n.b. this does not include buildings themselves dedicated as Holocaust memorials)."}
Date
2019
Active dates
Reconstruction dates
Artist/ Maker
Unknown
Origin
Historical Origin
Unknown
Community type
Unknown |
Congregation
Unknown
Location
United States of America (USA) | Texas | Houston, TX
| Holocaust Museum Houston 5401 Caroline St, Houston, TX 77004
Site
Unknown
School/Style
Unknown|
Period
Unknown
Period Detail
Collection
Unknown |
Documentation / Research project
Unknown
Iconographical Subject
Unknown |
Textual Content
Languages of inscription
Shape / Form
Material / Technique
Jerusalem limestone
Material Stucture
Material Decoration
Material Bonding
Material Inscription
Material Additions
Material Cloth
Material Lining
Tesserae Arrangement
Density
Colors
Construction material
Measurements
Height
Length
Width
Depth
Circumference
Thickness
Diameter
Weight
Axis
Panel Measurements
Condition
Extant
Documented by CJA
Surveyed by CJA
Present Usage
Present Usage Details
Condition of Building Fabric
Architectural Significance type
Historical significance: Event/Period
Historical significance: Collective Memory/Folklore
Historical significance: Person
Architectural Significance: Style
Architectural Significance: Artistic Decoration
Urban significance
Significance Rating
0
Ornamentation
Custom
Contents
Codicology
Scribes
Script
Number of Lines
Ruling
Pricking
Quires
Catchwords
Hebrew Numeration
Blank Leaves
Direction/Location
Façade (main)
Endivances
Location of Torah Ark
Location of Apse
Location of Niche
Location of Reader's Desk
Location of Platform
Temp: Architecture Axis
Arrangement of Seats
Location of Women's Section
Direction Prayer
Direction Toward Jerusalem
Coin
Coin Series
Coin Ruler
Coin Year
Denomination
Signature
Colophon
Scribal Notes
Watermark
Hallmark
Group
Group
Group
Group
Group
Trade Mark
Binding
Decoration Program
Suggested Reconsdivuction
History/Provenance

The wall was created when the museum was expanded and remodeled to include a theater. This wall is one outside the theater entrance.

Main Surveys & Excavations
Sources
Type
Documenter
Samuel D. Gruber | 2023
Author of description
Samuel D. Gruber | 2023
Architectural Drawings
|
Computer Reconstruction
|
Section Head
|
Language Editor
|
Donor
|
Negative/Photo. No.
The following information on this monument will be completed: