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AUSCHWITZ:
Technique
and Operation
of
the Gas Chambers © | |
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Page 416 |
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Photo 7 |
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| Photo 7a |
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Photos 7 and 7a
[PMO neg.
no. 297, Ludwig series] |
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Until 1980, this was the only known photograph showing
virtually the whole of the south side of Krematorium IV.
Experimenting with photographic papers of different sensitivities
and different exposure times scarcely improve the poor quality of
the original at all, mainly due to the fact that the original was
simply a contact print.
Just to the left of the building is
the. temporary watchtower located at the turn in the Ringstrasse.
The building itself is very nearly fnished, which means that the
photo can be dated as being taken in mid-March 1943. The windows
have only just been installed, as those of the furnace room still
have on them the criss-crosses of paper that protected them during
transport. From right to left on the south side we can see: part of
the extended wing of the coke store: the double door and three
windows of the furnace room containing the eight muffle furnace; the
large central room lit by four small, high windows; the two windows
of the doctor's room; the window of the coal store: lastly in the
western part, with a lower roof, a door and three small, high
windows in accordance with Bauleitung Drawing 2036. The
chimneys of the stoves in these westernmost rooms can just about be
distinguished. Between the two big chimneys, which have not yet been
used (no soot stains at the top) it is possible to see a geodesic
reference tower which is still there today. The fact that the south
side of the western part of the building exactly matches Drawing
2036 led people to believe than the northern side of the
building also matched 2036(p), but this was mistaken.
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Photo 8
[Enlargement of
part of PMO neg. no. 20995/465] |
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The western parts of Krematorien IV and V photographed
from the Zentral Sauna. then under constmcthon. The photo was taken
at the beginning of Aril 1943, between 1st and 7th, by SS Sergeant
Kaman, who was photographing the excavations for the foundations of
the the Zentral Sauna, looking north. He later took another photo
from the same spot when the excavations were completed, but this
time his camera was tilted at a greater angle and the two
Krematorien did not appear in the picture, only part of the grounds
of Kr IV, enclosed by barbed wire. This barbed wire fence was being
erected at the begining of April, as mentioned in a letter from Huta
to the Bauleitung, dated 7th April (BW 30/30, page
5).
The visible parts of Krematorien IV and V are
labelled on the second photo.
This photo shows that the
western end and southern side of Krematorium IV was in accordance
with Drawing 2036(p), and proves that the gas-tight shutters
ordered by the Bauleitung from the DAW workshops on 13th
Febuary 1943 had indeed been fitted on 28th as noted by the Riedel
& Son site foreman. The photo also confirms that the stoves were
installed in the two westernmost rooms, for their chimneys are
clearly visible. Finally, although the picture is somewhat blurred,
it is possible to distinguish a door in the south side of
Krematorium V (to the left of the coal store window), giving on to
the corridor and not shown on drawing 2036. Without this new door
absolutely essential for proper ventilation, operation of the
gas chamber of Krematorien IV and V would have been hampered by lack
of adequate ventilation and the attendant risk of contamination of
the rest of the
building. | |
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AUSCHWITZ:
Technique
and operation
of the gas chambers
Jean-Claude Pressac
© 1989, The
Beate Klarsfeld Foundation |
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