News
International fundraising campaign for the acquisition and preservation of historical documents
The Auschwitz-Birkenau Foundation has launched the international fundraising campaign “Camp Mail – Purchase of Documents,” aimed at acquiring and preserving original documents related to German Nazi concentration and extermination camps.
“The impetus for launching this initiative was an auction scheduled to take place in North Rhine-Westphalia in November 2025. More than 600 original documents originating from concentration camps, ghettos, and other sites of German crimes were put up for sale,” said Wojciech Soczewica, CEO of the Auschwitz-Birkenau Foundation. “Among them were postcards and letters sent by prisoners, camp administration documents, correspondence cards, and other authentic testimonies of the Holocaust. These materials are of invaluable importance for education about the crimes of the Second World War and could have ended up in private collections or been misused. International protests led to the suspension of the auction and contributed to safeguarding the dignity of the victims,” he added.
Thanks to the support of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, donors, and a financial guarantee provided by the Auschwitz-Birkenau Foundation, a significant portion of these materials was successfully acquired. The documents will be transferred to the Memorial, where they will be professionally preserved, archived, and made available to researchers and educators.
The Foundation emphasizes that these documents possess exceptional historical and moral value. They are not only sources of knowledge about the functioning of the German Nazi system of terror, but above all personal traces of the lives of the victims. Preserved correspondence, official forms, and everyday items help us better understand the experiences of prisoners and the scale of the Holocaust.
As the Foundation notes, during the implementation of the project it became apparent that there is a vast and alarming trade in original camp documents and memorabilia connected with victims of Nazi crimes. Such materials increasingly appear at auctions or enter private collections, where they may be permanently lost to scholarly research and historical education. In response, the Auschwitz-Birkenau Foundation launched a programme to acquire and safeguard such artefacts. Its purpose is not only to protect the documents themselves, but also to preserve the memory of the victims, counteract the commercialization of Holocaust testimonies, and ensure that these materials remain accessible to future generations.
“Objects and documents connected with the history of extermination centres and concentration camps are not only evidence of crimes against humanity that are not subject to any statute of limitations, but also powerful source materials for the work of historians and researchers. Every time a document relating to a particular individual passes into private hands, that victim is removed from the body of material that can be studied and described in historical research. The memory of such a victim fades away,” said Piotr M. A. Cywiński, Director of the Museum.
The Foundation stresses that preserving authentic testimonies of history is one of the key elements in protecting the memory of the victims of Auschwitz and the Holocaust. Every document, letter, or postcard constitutes an individual trace of a human life and helps restore the identity of people whom the system of German terror sought to strip of their humanity.
As a result of these efforts, other auction houses from various countries have begun contacting the Foundation, offering opportunities to purchase similar collections. The implementation of such acquisitions, however, depends on the availability of financial resources. For this reason, the Foundation is seeking donors willing to support the purchase of additional historical testimonies and help preserve them for future generations.
An important contribution to the campaign comes through cooperation with the Bethe Foundation of Bergisch Gladbach, Germany, which has committed to matching all donations made to the fundraising account between 1 May and 31 July 2026. This means that every donation made during this period will have double the value.
For the purposes of the campaign, a dedicated donation account has been established at Bank für Kirche und Diakonie – KD-Bank. The Auschwitz-Birkenau Foundation has also been entered into the German register of charitable organizations, enabling German donors to deduct their donations from their taxes.
Donations may be made to our donation account held at Bank für Kirche und Diakonie – KD-Bank:
Account details:
Account holder: Auschwitz-Birkenau Foundation
IBAN: DE32 3506 0190 0020 0920 09
SWIFT/BIC: GENODED1DKD
Transfer reference: “Camp Mail – Purchase of Documents”
More information about the project and the activities of the Auschwitz-Birkenau Foundation can be found on the Foundation’s website.
