This red tie with a black-and-white abstract pattern belonged to David Honig. He bought it when he was 17 years old after graduating from a Jewish private business school in Krakow, Poland. David was proud of his tie, and he brought it with him when he escaped Nazi persecution.
David Honig’s Tie
This red tie with a black-and-white abstract pattern belonged to David Honig. He bought it when he was 17 years old after graduating from a Jewish private business school in Krakow, Poland. (Photo: Peter Berra)
David was proud of his tie, his first adult purchase after graduation, and he brought it with him when he escaped Nazi persecution. (Photo: Peter Berra)
David Honig’s Escape
Germany invaded Poland in September 1939 and a few days later the Soviet army followed in the East. In 1940, David’s mother told Polish soldiers that her son had typhus and could not be drafted. David fled his house with his uncle and seven other men to go to Romania. On the way there, they had to cross a river holding their personal belongings above their heads. In doing so, David protected his tie and school certificate.
David’s parents and sister were hidden by a non-Jewish Pole named Wladyslaw Dobrowolski, an old customer from the family’s mill. The Honig family was the only Jewish family from their entire village to survive the Holocaust.
David’s wife, Sheva Honig, donated this tie to the Montreal Holocaust Museum in 2014.
This project is part of the implementation of the Plan culturel numérique du Québec.
