“#LastSeen. Pictures of Nazi Deportations” is the result of cooperation between the Arolsen Archives and four partner institutions: the House of the Wannsee Conference Memorial and Educational Site, the Institute for Municipal History and Remembrance, Munich, the USC Dornsife Center for Advanced Genocide Research, Los Angeles, and the Center for Research on Antisemitism at the TU Berlin.
The Arolsen Archives are involved in a variety of digital remembrance projects. They range from the extensive online archive on victims and survivors of Nazi persecution through to initiatives like #everynamecounts that inspire volunteers from all over the world. #LastSeen is their latest project.
More than 50,000 Jewish people were deported from Berlin. The Arolsen Archives have lists that document these deportations. No photos of the deportations from Berlin have yet been discovered. We hope to be able to find pictures of these historical events through #LastSeen.
The #LastSeen initiative uses a two-pronged approach. Firstly, it appeals for people to search for as-yet undiscovered contemporary photographs and film footage of Nazi deportations. Secondly, it appeals for people to help scholars identify the people and places shown on existing pictures and the contexts in which they were taken. Good local knowledge is often required, and sometimes research has to be carried out in the local area. The FAQ contain information on what you can do to help us.
#LastSeen will bring together all photographs of deportations from the German Reich for the first time. Many of these pictures are already familiar, but they have never been published together. Even more photos are probably still hidden away in archives. Our FAQ covers everything archives need to know about the project. We look forward to working with you!
