Bidspirit auction | Official Order Prohibiting Jews from

Official Order Prohibiting Jews from Entering Certain Streets in the City of Radom. August 1940 - SPERRUNG VON STRASSEN FÜR JUDEN – “Closing of Streets to Jews” – rare poster issued by the Nazi occupation authorities (General Government) in the city of Radom, Poland, prohibiting Jews from entering and moving through certain streets in Radom. Printed signature of Kujath, the official responsible for the city of Radom on behalf of the District Governor. Radom, August 30, 1940. German and Polish. “Closing of Streets to Jews. Jews are prohibited from passing through the following streets or sections of streets on Sunday, September 1, 1940, between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m.: 3 Maja Square; Żeromskiego Street, from Witolda Street to house no. 58; Piłsudskiego Street; Sienkiewicza Street; Moniuszki Street; Foch Street; and the section of Słowackiego Street between 1 Maja Street and Żeromskiego Street. Radom, August 30, 1940. Representative of the District Governor for the City of Radom (-) Kujath”. The order was published one year after the outbreak of World War II and the German invasion of Poland (September 1, 1939). The prohibition against entering these streets was directly connected with the first anniversary of the outbreak of the war and with German preparations for establishing the Nazi-controlled sphere within the city. The Germans sought to prevent the presence and movement of Jews along Radom’s principal streets during commemorative events and military parades organized by the Nazi administration on that day. These restrictions on freedom of movement and the exclusion of Jews from public space constituted a preliminary stage in the process that culminated in the establishment of the Radom Ghetto in March 1941 and the concentration of the Jews of the city and surrounding area within it. The streets specified on the poster, foremost among them Żeromskiego Street (Żeromskistrasse) and 3 Maja Square (3. Mai-Platz), were among the principal and most prestigious thoroughfares in the heart of the city, where government offices and the main SS and Gestapo headquarters were located. Under Nazi racial policy, the presence of Jews on streets used by German soldiers and officers was regarded as a “contamination” of public space, and their presence there was therefore completely prohibited during the designated hours. The closure of these streets in 1940 formed part of the gradual process of excluding Jews from Radom’s central urban areas. Shortly thereafter, the Germans transformed this area into a zone designated for Germans only (Nur für Deutsche), and in March–April 1941 forced approximately 33,000 Jews out of the city center and established two ghettos – (the Large Ghetto and the Small Ghetto) – in poorer and more peripheral districts. 57×41 cm. Minor tears along the edges. Minor creases. Fold mark. Good condition.