Investigations at the Heereskraftfahrpark (HKP) 562 Forced-Labor Camp in Vilnius, Lithuania
This research, examining the site of the HKP Forced-Labor Camp in Vilnius, Lithuania, located and better defined the characteristics and remaining features of the 1944 camp. There were four over-arching objectives for this research. First, to find the entrance into the principal hiding place where J...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-01-01
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| Series: | Heritage |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2571-9408/6/1/24 |
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| author | Philip Reeder Harry Jol Richard Freund Alastair McClymont Paul Bauman Ramūnas Šmigelskas |
| author_facet | Philip Reeder Harry Jol Richard Freund Alastair McClymont Paul Bauman Ramūnas Šmigelskas |
| author_sort | Philip Reeder |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This research, examining the site of the HKP Forced-Labor Camp in Vilnius, Lithuania, located and better defined the characteristics and remaining features of the 1944 camp. There were four over-arching objectives for this research. First, to find the entrance into the principal hiding place where Jews interned in the camp took refuge just before the camp’s liquidation by the Nazis and their local collaborators. Next, find the location of the burial trench(es) where Jewish prisoners who were found in hiding were murdered and initially buried. Next, to find the mass-burial site where Jewish survivors reburied the remains from the trench(es). Lastly, to locate any other evidence related to the murder of Jews at the HKP 562 site. Ground-Penetrating Radar (GPR) found the principal hiding place in the basement of Building 2. Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT) discovered the two trenches where camp inhabitants who were shot on-site during liquidation were first buried. ERT also found the location of the mass grave that holds the reburied remains from the trenches. Bullet-scarred walls near the burial trenches indicate where the Jews were shot on-site. This research solved one of the thousands of unknowns about the Holocaust, using geoscience to uncover forgotten and hidden history. The materials and methodologies used in this research can be applied in uncovering this history at thousands of other Holocaust and genocide sites worldwide. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T12:31:18Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-0b73b4651a3d48ea8e30d268d3b354b3 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2571-9408 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T12:31:18Z |
| publishDate | 2023-01-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Heritage |
| spelling | doaj.art-0b73b4651a3d48ea8e30d268d3b354b32023-11-30T22:29:10ZengMDPI AGHeritage2571-94082023-01-016146648210.3390/heritage6010024Investigations at the Heereskraftfahrpark (HKP) 562 Forced-Labor Camp in Vilnius, LithuaniaPhilip Reeder0Harry Jol1Richard Freund2Alastair McClymont3Paul Bauman4Ramūnas Šmigelskas5Center for Environmental Research and Education, Bayer School of Natural and Environmental Sciences, Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, PA 15282, USADepartment of Geography and Anthropology, University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, Eau Claire, WI 54702, USADepartment of Philosophy and Religion, Christopher Newport University, Newport News, VA 23606, USABGC Engineering, Inc., Calgary, AB T2E 7W6, CanadaBGC Engineering, Inc., Calgary, AB T2E 7W6, CanadaAcademy of Cultural Heritage, Dominikonų Street 15/1, LT-01131 Vilnius, LithuaniaThis research, examining the site of the HKP Forced-Labor Camp in Vilnius, Lithuania, located and better defined the characteristics and remaining features of the 1944 camp. There were four over-arching objectives for this research. First, to find the entrance into the principal hiding place where Jews interned in the camp took refuge just before the camp’s liquidation by the Nazis and their local collaborators. Next, find the location of the burial trench(es) where Jewish prisoners who were found in hiding were murdered and initially buried. Next, to find the mass-burial site where Jewish survivors reburied the remains from the trench(es). Lastly, to locate any other evidence related to the murder of Jews at the HKP 562 site. Ground-Penetrating Radar (GPR) found the principal hiding place in the basement of Building 2. Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT) discovered the two trenches where camp inhabitants who were shot on-site during liquidation were first buried. ERT also found the location of the mass grave that holds the reburied remains from the trenches. Bullet-scarred walls near the burial trenches indicate where the Jews were shot on-site. This research solved one of the thousands of unknowns about the Holocaust, using geoscience to uncover forgotten and hidden history. The materials and methodologies used in this research can be applied in uncovering this history at thousands of other Holocaust and genocide sites worldwide.https://www.mdpi.com/2571-9408/6/1/24HolocaustHeereskraftfahrpark (HKP) 562geoarchaeologynear-surface geophysicscultural heritage |
| spellingShingle | Philip Reeder Harry Jol Richard Freund Alastair McClymont Paul Bauman Ramūnas Šmigelskas Investigations at the Heereskraftfahrpark (HKP) 562 Forced-Labor Camp in Vilnius, Lithuania Heritage Holocaust Heereskraftfahrpark (HKP) 562 geoarchaeology near-surface geophysics cultural heritage |
| title | Investigations at the Heereskraftfahrpark (HKP) 562 Forced-Labor Camp in Vilnius, Lithuania |
| title_full | Investigations at the Heereskraftfahrpark (HKP) 562 Forced-Labor Camp in Vilnius, Lithuania |
| title_fullStr | Investigations at the Heereskraftfahrpark (HKP) 562 Forced-Labor Camp in Vilnius, Lithuania |
| title_full_unstemmed | Investigations at the Heereskraftfahrpark (HKP) 562 Forced-Labor Camp in Vilnius, Lithuania |
| title_short | Investigations at the Heereskraftfahrpark (HKP) 562 Forced-Labor Camp in Vilnius, Lithuania |
| title_sort | investigations at the heereskraftfahrpark hkp 562 forced labor camp in vilnius lithuania |
| topic | Holocaust Heereskraftfahrpark (HKP) 562 geoarchaeology near-surface geophysics cultural heritage |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2571-9408/6/1/24 |
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