Petr Ginz (1 February 1928 – 28 September 1944) was a Czechoslovak boy of partial Jewish background who was deported to the Theresienstadt Ghetto (known as Terezín, in Czech) during the Holocaust. He was murdered at the age of sixteen when he was transferred to Auschwitz concentration camp and gassed to death upon arrival. His diary was published after his death.

Life

thumb|Earth seen from the Moon

Ginz was the son of Otto Ginz, the manager of the export department of a Prague textile company and a notable Esperantist, and Marie Ginz (née Dolanská). Ginz's father was Jewish, while his mother was not. His parents met at an Esperantist congress. His mother was from Hradec Králové, where her father was a village teacher. Ginz received frequent visits from his relatives, especially during Christmas holidays. Ginz was a very intelligent boy. Between the ages of 8 and 14 he wrote four novels: From Prague to China, The Wizard from Altay Mountains, Around the World in One Second and A Visit from Prehistory — the only surviving novel. The novels, including Návštěva z pravěku (), were written in the style of Jules Verne and illustrated with his own paintings. He was interested in the sciences and yearned for knowledge. Due to his parents' interest in Esperanto, that language was one of Petr's native languages (the other being Czech).

According to the anti-Jewish laws of the Third Reich, children from mixed marriages were to be deported to a concentration camp at the age of 14. Young Ginz was transported to the Theresienstadt concentration camp in October 1942. His efforts in the sciences and thirst for knowledge remained, and he tried to study even in the concentration camp. He often read from a library full of confiscated books to which he had access. He was placed in Domov č.1 (Home No. 1, building L417). He established and prepared for publication the periodical magazine Vedem, which means "We Lead". He also wrote an Esperanto–Czech dictionary as well as several other short novels that have since been lost. One such piece of writing is called "Rambles through Theresienstadt" in which he interviews people and comments on people, buildings, and even the crematorium.

The breadth of his interests, abilities, and character are shown by his remaining writings and by the testimonials of friends who survived. He was interested in literature, history, paintings, geography, sociology, and the technical fields. The magazine Vedem was published every Friday for two years.

Drawing

Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon, whose mother and grandmother were survivors of Auschwitz, was asked by S. Isaac Mekel, director of development at the American Society for Yad Vashem, to take an item from Yad Vashem onto the American Space Shuttle Columbia. destroying the copy of Ginz's drawing on what would have been his 75th birthday. In 2018, 15 years after the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster, another copy was given by Yad Vashem to Ilan's widow, Rona, to give to astronaut Andrew Feustel. Feustel carried it to space during Expedition 56 in memory of Ginz and Ramon. Feustel's video message commemorating Holocaust Remembrance Day (Yom HaShoah) 2018/5778 featured the astronaut displaying Ginz's depiction of a view of Earth from the Moon. On February 1, 2020, Feustel gifted one of the copies of “Moon Landscape” brought to space to the Czech Center Museum Houston.

Legacy

thumb|[[Stolperstein for Petr Ginz in front of Stárkova 1745/4 in Prague]]

  • The asteroid 50413 Petrginz was named in his honour.
  • In 2005 the Czech Post issued a 31 KČ stamp with the Moon drawing and a portrait in remembrance of Petr Ginz.
  • A Stolperstein by German artist Gunter Demnig was installed in his honor in Prague.
  • He was the subject of the play The Diary of Petr Ginz performed at the Prague Fringe Festival in 2008.
  • His life was commemorated in a 2012 documentary film, The Last Flight of Petr Ginz, directed by Sandra Dickson and Churchill Roberts.
  • Norwegian progressive rock group Gazpacho included a song inspired by Petr Ginz on their 2014 album Demon.
  • His story is commemorated in a song, "For Petr and Ilan", on the album Does the Land Remember Me? (2018) by Ben Fisher.

See also

  • List of Holocaust diarists
  • List of diarists
  • List of posthumous publications of Holocaust victims

References

  • The Diary of Petr Ginz ( published in English in 2007)
  • Moon Landscape (the drawing)
  • Petr Ginz – Theresienstadt at Yad Vashem Museum
  • The Last Flight of Petr Ginz (2011 documentary film)
  • The Last Flight of Petr Ginz, UN Study Guide.
  • Documents about Petr Ginz in the collection of the Jewish Museum Prague .