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Disappearing ball and magic cup trick returned after 50 years to the cousin of a Jewish youth killed during the Holocaust 2013.319.1 b front

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Washington, United States

Disappearing ball and magic cup trick that originally belonged to 16 year old Gustav Steiner. He entrusted it to his non-Jewish friend and neighbor, Emil Varecka, in July 1942 prior to his deportation from Prostejov, Czechoslovakia, to Ghetto Theresienstadt. The ball vase trick was recovered by Gustav's second cousin, Maud Michal Stecklmacher Beer, when she visited Prostejov in 1990. She met Emil, who offered her the toy that he had kept since 1942. Prostejov was annexed and occupied by Nazi Germany in March 1939. On July 2, 1942, Gustav and his father, Josef, along with Josef's brother Max and his wife Steffi, and Max's daughter Käthe Stecklmacher, her husband Fritz, and their two daughters, 13 year old Maud and 8 year old Karmela, were deported to Terezin. On July 28, Gustav and Josef were sent to Baranowicze, Poland (Baranovichy, Belarus) where they were murdered upon arrival. Max died in Theresienstadt on September 14. Fritz committed suicide there in May 1943. Steffi was deported and murdered in Auschwitz in October 1944. The camp was liberated on May 8, 1945. Käthe, Maud, and Karmela soon returned to Prostejov. The three immigrated to Israel in March 1949.

Disappearing ball and magic cup trick that originally belonged to 16 year old Gustav Steiner. He entrusted it to his non-Jewish friend and neighbor, Emil Varecka, in July 1942 prior to his deportation from Prostejov, Czechoslovakia, to Ghetto Theresienstadt. The ball vase trick was recovered by Gustav's second cousin, Maud Michal Stecklmacher Beer, when she visited Prostejov in 1990. She met Emil, who offered her the toy that he had kept since 1942. Prostejov was annexed and occupied by Nazi Germany in March 1939. On July 2, 1942, Gustav and his father, Josef, along with Josef's brother Max and his wife Steffi, and Max's daughter Käthe Stecklmacher, her husband Fritz, and their two daughters, 13 year old Maud and 8 year old Karmela, were deported to Terezin. On July 28, Gustav and Josef were sent to Baranowicze, Poland (Baranovichy, Belarus) where they were murdered upon arrival. Max died in Theresienstadt on September 14. Fritz committed suicide there in May 1943. Steffi was deported and murdered in Auschwitz in October 1944. The camp was liberated on May 8, 1945. Käthe, Maud, and Karmela soon returned to Prostejov. The three immigrated to Israel in March 1949.

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  • Title: Disappearing ball and magic cup trick returned after 50 years to the cousin of a Jewish youth killed during the Holocaust 2013.319.1 b front
  • Provenance: The magic ball and cup toy was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2013 by Maud Michal Beer, the cousin of Gustav Steiner., The magic ball and cup toy was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2013 by Maud Michal Beer, the cousin of Gustav Steiner.
  • Subject Keywords: Concentration camp inmates--Czechoslovakia--Biography. Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)--Czechoslovakia--Personal narratives, Jewish. Jewish children in the Holocaust--Czechoslovakia--Biography. Jewish families--Czech Republic--Prostejov--Biography. Jews--Persecutions--Czechoslovakia--Biography. Women concentration camp inmates--Czechoslovakia--Biography., Concentration camp inmates--Czechoslovakia--Biography. Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945)--Czechoslovakia--Personal narratives, Jewish. Jewish children in the Holocaust--Czechoslovakia--Biography. Jewish families--Czech Republic--Prostejov--Biography. Jews--Persecutions--Czechoslovakia--Biography. Women concentration camp inmates--Czechoslovakia--Biography.
  • Type: Toys, Toys
  • Rights: Permanent Collection, Permanent Collection
  • External Link: See the full record at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, See the full record at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
  • Medium: a. Yellow painted, varnished, wooden pedestal cup with ridged, concentric circles on the exterior and an unpainted, roughly finished interior. It has a thin, cylindrical stem with a narrow band that expands into a flared, circular base with an incised rim. There is a red stain on the base. b. Yellow painted, varnished, dome shaped, wooden lid for (a.) with ridged, concentric circles on the exterior and a ball-shaped finial on the flat top center. The interior is unpainted. c. Circular, double ringed wooden cap with a yellow painted rim, a concave underside, and a red painted domed top which gives the illusion of a ball when inserted into the top of the cup (a) or is hidden when inserted into the lid (b.) d. Small, red painted, varnished wooden ball., a. Yellow painted, varnished, wooden pedestal cup with ridged, concentric circles on the exterior and an unpainted, roughly finished interior. It has a thin, cylindrical stem with a narrow band that expands into a flared, circular base with an incised rim. There is a red stain on the base. b. Yellow painted, varnished, dome shaped, wooden lid for (a.) with ridged, concentric circles on the exterior and a ball-shaped finial on the flat top center. The interior is unpainted. c. Circular, double ringed wooden cap with a yellow painted rim, a concave underside, and a red painted domed top which gives the illusion of a ball when inserted into the top of the cup (a) or is hidden when inserted into the lid (b.) d. Small, red painted, varnished wooden ball.
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

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