Heart shaped carved stone ashtray acquired by a British officer

Handcarved ashtray in the shape of a heart made by an internee at a British detention camp on Cyprus. It was given to or found by Lt. D.P. Grehan, Royal Irish Fusiliers, British Army, an officer at the Karaolos camp from March 1947 to June 1948. This piece was made from the local limestone, a frequently used material. Their tools were often made of recycled materials, such as tin cans, or nails and wood. The Joint Distribution Committee set up craft workshops to alleviate the boredom of confinement and the British encouraged it as a way to occupy the inmates. The internees were Ma'apilim, illegal immigrants, most Jewish survivors of the Holocaust, captured while trying to reach Eretz Israel without permission from the British. Great Britain controlled Palestine under a United Nations mandate and enforced very restrictive immigration policies. The huge number of postwar displaced persons led the British to set up the camps in 1946 as a deterrent. Ships attempting to bring unauthorized refugees were stopped by the British Navy and the passengers were interned on Cyprus. On May 14, 1948, the State of Israel was established. Within six months, most of the refugees interned on Cyprus were welcomed into the Jewish homeland.