The Size of a Matchbox: The Story of a Miniature Tanakh from the Lodz Ghetto

Descendants of Shlomo Knobel, who created a miniature Tanakh in the Lodz Ghetto, arrived at Yad Vashem to see the rare artifact that miraculously survived the Holocaust. The book, slightly larger than a matchbox, was created over three years of nightly labor. Shlomo completed it in 1943 and handed it to the head of the Judenrat. After the war, Bella Bialik found the book in a hiding place and donated it to the museum in 1983. The author's identity remained unknown until a newspaper article helped locate Knobel 40 years later.

Descendants of Shlomo Knobel, who created a miniature Tanakh in the Lodz Ghetto, arrived with their entire family at the Yad Vashem memorial complex to touch this rare artifact that miraculously survived the Holocaust. Shlomo Knobel worked on the Tanakh, which is slightly larger than a matchbox, for three years, mostly at night, as he was busy at a military shoe factory during the day. He obtained special ink by giving up his meager food rations. He finished copying the Tanakh in 1943, bound it, and handed the 85-page book to the head of the Judenrat, Chaim Rumkowski. Shlomo's son was killed during a roundup, but he and his wife survived, later having another son. They repatriated to Israel in 1972. Shlomo believed the book was lost. After the war, Bella Bialik, who had also been in the ghetto, returned and found the book in a hiding place along with a miniature hanukkiah. In 1983, she donated them to Yad Vashem. The creator's identity remained unknown until a newspaper article helped locate Knobel 40 years later. A few days ago, three generations of the family came to the museum. Avi Knobel, Shlomo's son, noted that the encounter with the artifact moved everyone, especially the younger generation living in the US.