31st August 1944
Schüttenhofen

Schüttenhofen (Sušice)

Sušice (German: Schüttenhofen) is a town in Klatovy District in the Plzeň Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 11,000 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument zone.

News article

Adolf Hitler's head under the silhouette of an eagle with outstretched wings looks down from the three-part ceramic relief, which has been located right next to the entrance to the Česká spořitelna building on the square in Sušice since 1936. The existence of a curious depiction of Hitler right in the center of the city, which is the gateway to Šumava, is often not known even by local residents who pass by daily. Experts talk about a hidden historical peculiarity. 

The plaque, located at the corner of Poštovní Street and Náměstí Svobody, consisting of three parts with brown glaze, bears the inscription 'SUŠICE - BRÁNA ŠUMAVY. DONE LP 1936 FOR THE FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY OF SPOŘITELNY MĚSTA SUŠICE. MODELED BY JOSEF MATĚJŮ'. In 1936, Sušická spořitelna celebrated its fiftieth anniversary. A plastic map of Šumava was originally supposed to be placed in a niche on the facade of the new building of the savings bank. However, the then mayor of the city, Jan Seitz, pushed into the niche a unique plastic relief with dimensions of 2.5 x 4 meters. The author of the work is academic sculptor Josef Matějů from Prague. According to the publication, the left part of the relief refers to 100 attractions from the old Šumava II. to Sušice's ancient past. It is about panning for gold in the Ottawa River and the merchant salt trail that passed through the city. In the foreground, two men are panning for gold, in the middle plan, three merchants, carrying a load of goods.

However, the upper part of this relief often escapes attention. It reminds us of the fact that the borders of three countries - Czechoslovakia, Germany and Austria - met and still meet in the Šumava. Beneath the silhouette of an eagle with outstretched wings, relief portraits of the three representatives of these states holding each other's shoulders are displayed. On the far left is the then Czechoslovak president Edvard Beneš, in the middle is the German Reich Chancellor Adolf Hitler. In the portrait on the right, some sources state that it is the then Austrian Chancellor Kurt Schuschnigg, but his appearance does not correspond at all. This is neither his predecessor Engelber Dollfufie, who was assassinated in 1934, nor the then Austrian president Wilhelm Miklas. And so this third portrait is shrouded in mystery for now. 

Not even the author himself brought more light to the mystery. When he described the relief, he only stated for this part that it depicted national borders. There is also no mention of this relief in the contemporary press. The right part of the relief recalls the tradition of local tannery, the chemical industry and, above all, the importance of the Sušice matchmaking industry for the economic development of the city. The central part of the relief represents the town picturesquely laid out in the valley of the Otava River below Svatobor Hill. The five figures there by the blossoming tree are probably looking from the chapel of St. Guardian Angels (Andělíček) down to Sušice. 'Adolf Hitler's head on the Sušice relief is, let's say, a hidden historical peculiarity. In any case, I think it should stay there for people to see. It is a testimony of a time that has its own importance. It would certainly be the worst thing to try to remove something like this hastily. It is good that it is written about, that people will know about it. Personally, I don't know that anything similar exists anywhere else', said well-known researcher and columnist Zdeněk Roučka for Plzeňská Drbna, who specialises in the Šumava region and World War II.  The editor of Plzeňská Drbna randomly approached three local citizens on the sidewalk in front of the relief, and they all confirmed with surprise that they had no idea about the depiction of Adolf Hitler until that moment. 'It's new for me. I will definitely tell everyone I know about it here in Sušice, anyway, it is a very interesting reminder of that time", said the young woman. 

Source: plzenska.drbna.cz

Torah Scrolls

The Jewish Community in Sušice was established in the mid-1600s. From all accounts, the Jews in Sušice were  integrated into the local community, as were the other Jewish communities in Bohemia and Moravia. The Jews were not isolated in a ghetto; they spoke the local language, went to school with non-Jewish children, and had non-Jewish friends. This acceptance is one of the reasons Jews did not flee when the Nazi threat started to build.

We know that the Sušice scroll was one of about 1600 that were collected from Jewish communities in Bohemia and Moravia by  the Nazis during World War II.

The Torah scrolls, as well as over 100,000 Jewish ceremonial items, were sent to the Jewish Museum of Prague, where they remained, gathering dust, for years.

Only 1090 of the Jews from Bohemia and Moravia survived the war. When the Communists took over Czechoslovakia, there was no governmental interest in religion, and the scrolls continued to be left in storage.

In 1963, a prominent British art dealer, with good working relations in Czech art circles, was able to negotiate the sale of over 1500 Torah scrolls. The acquisition was funded by Ralph Yablon, a London businessman and philanthropist with the condition that they be entrusted to a non-commercial body. The Westminster Synagogue in London took on the mantle of housing, restoring and distributing these 'lost' scrolls. They created the Memorial Scrolls Trust to assume this responsibility. As part of their mission, the restored Czech scrolls were given a new life in congregations around the world -- on 'permanent loan' where they are touchstones for all of us to remember.

While researching the background of our Torah scroll, a congregant, Ron Fomalont, was able to connect with the only Jewish survivor of Sušice -- Hana Gruna. Hana was flown to Los Angeles for the Dedication Ceremony of the restored Torah. She literally handed the scroll to our congregation and asked us to remember the Jews of Sušice.

Source: thesms.org

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