Dutch ID Card (Persoonsbewijs) of J. Horsman, Developed by J.L. Lentz

Authors

Object ID

2019.2.270

Object Name

Card, Identification

Date

8-5-1941

Files

Content Warning

The Bulmash Family Holocaust Collection consists of images, documents, and artifacts related to the Holocaust. The collection contains materials that depict a number of topics that may be difficult for viewers to engage with, including: antisemitic descriptions, caricatures, and representation of Jewish people; Nazi imagery and ideology; descriptions and images of German ghettos; graphic images of the violence of the Holocaust; and the creation of the State of Israel. For more information, see our policy page.

Description

Document labelled “A 22 No 004760” three times along top, two fingerprints near bottom, gray border around fingerprint in bottom right corner marked “KOSTELOOS PERSOONSBEWIJS.” Back includes photograph of woman on left side.

Information Provided by Michael D. Bulmash: ID card designed by the obsessive J.L. Lentz included passport photos and fingerprints, address, signature, and the number of the issuing municipality. They were that much more difficult to forge or falsify for having three watermarks. Every Dutch citizen older than 15 had to carry this card as valid proof of identification. And for Jews, there was the required “J” along with a second “J” stamped on the card to make individuals more recognizable during checks. All Jews- full or partial- had to be registered. Thus, along with municipal and central registries, the dot maps which identified the geographical location by district of Jews, the Persoonsbewijs was a lethal instrument in the Nazi effort to round up Jews for deportation to transit and extermination camps.

Dimensions

4 x 9 1/4"

Keywords

Netherlands, J.L. Lentz

Subcollection

Netherlands

Recommended Citation

"Dutch ID Card (Persoonsbewijs) of J. Horsman, Developed by J.L. Lentz" (1941). Bulmash Family Holocaust Collection. 2019.2.270.
https://digital.kenyon.edu/bulmash/1596