Archaeology, Geo-Science, and the Holocaust: Finding Rhodes and Vilna by Richard A. Freund


Archaeology, Geo-Science, and the Holocaust: Finding Rhodes and Vilna
Title : Archaeology, Geo-Science, and the Holocaust: Finding Rhodes and Vilna
Author :
Rating :
ISBN : 1538102668
ISBN-10 : 9781538102664
Format Type : Hardcover
Number of Pages : -
Publication : Published April 1, 2018

In summer 2016 acclaimed archaeologist Richard Freund and his team made news worldwide when they discovered an escape tunnel from the Ponar concentration camp. This Holocaust site where more than 100,000 people perished is usually remembered for the terrible devastation that happened there. In the midst of this devastation, the discovery of an escape tunnel reminds us of the determination and tenacity of the people in the camp, and the hope they continued to carry. Archaeology, Geo-Science, and the Holocaust tells the story of this escape from the Ponar camp--from survivor records to the search for evidence to confirm the story. Most of the Jews at Ponar came from the nearby city of Vilna, which Napoleon called "the Jerusalem of the North" for the rich Jewish culture that flourished there. This book introduces readers to life in this "other Jerusalem," tells of the awful destruction of the Holocaust, and describes the dramatic escape and what the remaining archaeological evidence tells us about this other Jerusalem and those who lived there. Archaeology, Geo-Science, and the Holocaust focuses on the people who built the other Jerusalem, why they came, how they built a successful city, and how they persevered in the face of brutality. Freund tells a powerful story of hope and what we can learn from the archaeological evidence left behind.

Archaeology, Geo-Science, and the Holocaust: Finding Rhodes and Vilna Reviews

  • January Gray

    Informative. Covers the escape tunnels people used during the Holocaust.. I simply cannot imagine...

  • Katherine Wren

    It took me a month to parse through this book, but I have greatly enjoyed it. I am not a scientist or historian by trade, but I do teach the Holocaust in my junior high classes. This book gave me great insight into what was lost in communities outside of Poland and Germany. I appreciated the author's perspective and his insistence on not victimizing the dead a second time through our seeking to understand what happened and where.
    That said, some parts of this book were a dry read for a layman such as myself. They are worth pushing through. I would have preferred a narrative of Freund's experiences with less focus on the science, but that's not the purpose of this book. Overall, a very informative read. Anyone who teaches the Holocaust at any level of depth should take a look at this book in order to broaden their perspective and see just how widespread the loss beyond the communities typically studied and mentioned.

  • Heather Bennett

    The Archeology of the Holocaust is a fascinating book and the author knows his subject. We should have learned from the Holocaust, but it has been repeated by different cultures. Well written book and not a book that is a quick read.