Nazi shrunken heads, human skin lampshades, human soap, textiles from human hair? Sorting out the truth from the legends.

[Last updated on 23.12.2019]

In this article several claims about the use of the bodies of the Nazi victims will be examined. An attempt will be made to separate the facts from the rumors and legends that inevitably arose during and after the war and still live in the public consciousness.

1. Shrunken heads.
2. Human skin lampshades.
3. Human soap.
4. Human hair.
5. Summary.

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No End of History for the "Jewish Soap" Myth?

A critical review of Bożena Shallcross, The Holocaust Object in Polish and Polish-Jewish Culture
By Joachim Neander, Kraków/Poland

A Promising New Approach in Holocaust Studies


In the spring of 2011, a new book appeared on the market for Holocaust literature: The Holocaust Object in Polish and Polish-Jewish Culture. It was preceded already in 2010 by its Polish language version, Rzeczy i zagłada.[1] The author is Bożena Shallcross, presented at the University of Chicago’s Web site as “Associate Professor, Department of Slavic Languages & Literatures: Polish Literature & Interdisciplinary Studies; Program in Poetry and Poetics; Committee on Creative Writing; Affiliate, Department of Comparative Literature.”[2]