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Media Essay

Auschwitz - Photograph

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Auschwitz women children liberation concentration camps killing centers

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A large long building with a center tower sits empty with a rail line running through the middle. The field and railways in front of the building are overgrown with weeds and other debris. — Main entrance to the Auschwitz-Birkenau killing center. This photograph was taken some time after the liberation of the camp in January 1945. Poland, date uncertain.
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A group of three men with light skin tone carry an emaciated child. The child has a shaved head, light skin tone and is wearing next to nothing. The men are all wearing heavy outerwear. The man on the right wears a white armband with a red cross. — Soon after liberation, an emaciated child survivor is carried out of camp barracks by Soviet first-aid workers. Auschwitz, Poland, after January 27, 1945.

This photograph is a still image from Soviet film of the liberation of Auschwitz.
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Women group together in a prisoner barracks. Some of the women are laying on the floor, while others are laying on the wooden bunk beds. All of them are wearing heavy outwear or wrapped in blankets. — Women survivors huddled in a prisoner barracks shortly after Soviet forces liberated the Auschwitz camp. Auschwitz, Poland, 1945.
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Six children of various ages walk out of a wood barrack through snow. They are all wearing heavy coats, scarves, and other kinds of winter accessories. The child in the center of the photograph is the only one that looks towards the photographer. — Child survivors of the Auschwitz camp walk out of a barrack. This photograph was taken shortly after Soviet forces liberated the Auschwitz concentration camp on January 27, 1945.
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Large pile of suitcases stacked together. A few buildings can be seen in the background. The closest has a sign that reads, “F.L. Auschwitz-1.” A partial stamp can be seen on the bottom of the photograph. — Suitcases that belonged to people deported to the Auschwitz camp. This photograph was taken after Soviet forces liberated the camp. Auschwitz, Poland, after January 1945.
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Dozens of oblong bags stacked against each other. Each bag has writing on the side, describing contents and weight. Small tufts of hair are poking up between the seams of the bags. — Hair of women prisoners, prepared for shipment to Germany, found at the liberation of Auschwitz. Poland, 1945.
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Rail cars, discovered by Soviet forces, containing bundles to be shipped to Germany. [LCID: 85745] — Rail cars discovered by Soviet forces and containing possessions taken from deportees. This abandoned train was on the way to Germany loaded with personal effects (in this case, pillows) taken from Auschwitz victims. Auschwitz, Poland, after January 27, 1945.
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A uniformed physician and his assistant examine severely emaciated individuals sitting on a table. The main subject has no hair and skeletal features. — Soon after liberation, a Soviet physician examines Auschwitz camp survivors. Poland, February 18, 1945.

This photograph is a still image from Soviet film of the liberation of Auschwitz.
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Two sets of barbed wire fences around a line of large buildings. The ground is covered in snow. — View of a section of barbed-wire fence and barracks at the Auschwitz concentration camp in January 1945. This photo was taken by Stanisław Mucha, a Polish photographer, after the camp was liberated.

On January 27, 1945, Soviet forces liberated the Auschwitz main camp, Auschwitz-Birkenau, and Auschwitz-Monowitz. They found approximately 7,000 prisoners who had been left behind when the SS abandoned the camps and evacuated the prisoners on death marches.
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View of Auschwitz-Birkenau under a blanket of snow immediately after the liberation. [LCID: 58406] — View of Auschwitz-Birkenau under a blanket of snow immediately after the liberation. Auschwitz, Poland, January 1945.
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Aerial photograph of Auschwitz 3 camp. The photograph features labels of the camp boundary, the guard tower, bomb craters, and abandoned positions. There is a black label with white text at the top that reads, “Auschwitz 3 (Buna). Monowice, Poland. 14 January 1945.” — Aerial photograph of the Auschwitz III (Monowitz) camp, which was adjacent to the I.G. Farben plant. The photograph was taken following US bombing missions. Poland, January 14, 1945.
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Aerial photograph showing a large encampment with rows of buildings in the top left, roads, and a smaller group of buildings in the top right. — Aerial photograph of Auschwitz II (Birkenau). Poland, December 21, 1944.

This image is one of a series of aerial photographs taken by Allied reconnaissance units under the command of the 15th US Army Air Force during missions dating between April 4, 1944, and January 14, 1945.
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A grainy black and white aerial photo of several rows of long barracks in the snow. — Aerial view of barracks in the Auschwitz-Birkenau camp taken after Soviet forces liberated the camp on January 27, 1945.

Nazi authorities at Auschwitz started constructing a second camp in October 1941 near the Polish village of Brzezinka (called Birkenau in German). It was known as Auschwitz-Birkenau. Auschwitz-Birkenau was part of the larger Auschwitz concentration camp complex. Beginning in March 1942, Auschwitz-Birkenau functioned as both a concentration camp and a killing center, where the Nazis murdered Jews in gas chambers.
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The inside of a large factory with tables in rows. Rows of prisoners sit on one side of the tables and work on materials in front of them. — Prisoners at forced labor in the Siemens factory. Auschwitz camp, Poland, 1940–44.
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A road with buildings on either side leading to a brick wall. There is a large black square on the wall. — The Black Wall, between Block 10 (left) and Block 11 (right) in the Auschwitz concentration camp, where executions of inmates took place. Poland, date unknown.
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Several people exit a cattle train car. Most are wearing heavy coats, hats, and other outerwear. A few people can be seen wearing Star of David patches. — A photograph of Jews from Hungary who have just arrived at the Auschwitz-Birkenau killing center in 1944. They are disembarking the freight train on which they had been transported to the camp in inhumane conditions.

This photograph is from the Auschwitz Album (also called the “Lili Jacob Album,” after the Holocaust survivor who found it).
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A large group of people in two groups stand near empty train tracks. Guards survey the groups. The Auschwitz II-Birkenau gatehouse can be seen in the background. — A photograph of Jews from Hungary who have just arrived at the Auschwitz-Birkenau killing center in 1944. They are standing in two lines in an area of Birkenau known as "the ramp," about to undergo the selection process. Women, teenage girls, and young children are in one line. In the other line are men and teenage boys. In the background, the main gate to Auschwitz-Birkenau is visible.

This photograph is from the Auschwitz Album (also called the “Lili Jacob Album,” after the Holocaust survivor who found it).
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A crowded line of women and children. Most are wearing patches of the Star of David pinned to their heavy coats. — Jewish women and children who have been selected for death at the Auschwitz-Birkenau killing center walk toward the gas chambers. This photograph is one of many taken in late spring/summer 1944 as SS photographers documented the arrival, selection, and registration of transports of Jews from Hungary at Auschwitz-Birkenau.

This photograph is from the Auschwitz Album (also called the “Lili Jacob Album,” after the Holocaust survivor who found it).

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Bombing raid over part of the Auschwitz camp. Auschwitz, Poland, August 1944. [LCID: 64215] — Bombing raid over the I.G. Farben Buna plant. Poland, August 1944.
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Color photograph of two long lines of candles along the railway tracks leading up to the gate at Auschwitz. It is snowing and there is already a good amount on the ground. People can be seen in the background and off to the right side. — Candles mark the railway tracks leading to the Auschwitz camp during the commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the liberation of the camp. Poland, January 27, 2005.
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