17 photographs of the immigrants on board the Pentcho. Italy and the island of Camilla Nisi, ca. 1942-1944.
The illegal immigration ship Pentcho sailed in May 1940 from the port of Bratislava with 500 passengers on board. Due to its poor condition, the steam boiler exploded and the ship was stranded on the tiny island of Camilla Nisi, where the passengers survived for ten days. After three years in internment camps in Greece and Italy, they were liberated by Allied forces and immigrated to Palestine.
1-8. Eight photographs from the island Camilla Nisi: tent camps, sending an SOS signal, the ship on the sandbanks, and more.
9-10. Two photographs of the immigrants after being saved, on board the ferry Vesta, on their way to the Italian internment camp. Captioned on reverse in handwriting (Czech or Polish).
11-17. Seven photographs from the Italian internment camp Ferramonti di Tarsia, where the immigrants stayed until the Allied occupation: photograph with the camp's commanders, field works, living cabins, and more. Four are captioned and dated on reverse (1943) by hand.
Enclosed: two ribbons to be hung on the chest, marking 40 years since the immigrants' arrival in Palestine.
See next item.
Photographs: 8.5X6 - 4.5X6 cm, attached to three thick paper sheets. Good overall condition. Stains and slight defects. Small ink smears on some of the photographs. Pen markings on some of the photographs.