Jacobi, Dr. Hans

i) Typed 10-page report by Jacobi on six officials at Cologne, recommending them for positions in post-war Germany, AND PROVIDING DETAILS OF HIS PART IN SAVING THE LIVES OF THOUSANDS OF JEWISH REFUGEES, two carbon copies, with presumably autograph corrections, no date
ii) Collection of testimonials and certified translations of testimonials for Jacobi from the Synagoguen-Gemeinde of Krefeld, Bad Kreuznach, Aachen, Koblenz, Essen, Cologne, Trier and elsewhere, and also from the Advisory Board of the Hilfsverein der Juden in Deutschland e.V. for the Province Rheinland, 27 pages, 4to, mostly carbons, 1938-1939   
iii) Collection of Jacobi's writings, including: autograph declaration concerning the deportation of his father; autograph manuscripts of three poems, "An meine Frau", "Ballade" and "Der alter Dulder", one signed and dated "Hans Schaffen / 11 October 1939"; two copies of Jacobi's printed collection of poems: Gott wirf mich nicht zu Deinen Steinen. Cologne: Balduin Pick Verlag, 1949, 51 pages, 8vo, paper-covered boards; typescript, with autograph corrections, of the poem collection "Wintermärchen 1945", 26 pages, wrappers, 10 November-6 December 1945, and a carbon copy, also with autograph corrections; typed copies and carbons of a number of articles, including "Köln am Rhein" and "Rechtsunfall im Dritten Reich", with some autograph corrections; and a typed letter by Stephen Spender to Jacobi, signed ("Love Stephen"), 1 page, 27 July [no year]
iv) Collection of personal documents, including a typed carbon of a copy of Jacobi's birth certificate, stamped "Racecourse Aliens Camp Lingfield, 3 December 1940", and various documents relating to his pension and also compensation from the Cologne authorities

...In 1938 after the occupation of Austria, many Jewish refugees from Austria came to the Rhineland to attempt to flee to Luxemburg, Belgium and France. They were not in possession of a valid passport. When they attempted to cross the frontier illegally, they were caught, brought to prison, from where they should be sent to concentration camps...[W]hilst these unfortunate refugees were still in prison in the Rhineland, I negotiated with the different local Gestapo Departments for their release. The release was only granted, if I would take it on my personal responsibility that these persons would emigrate legally within one week...As it was very difficult to obtain visa[s] for persons with Austrian passports...I requested Mr. von Delius to issue German passports for these detainees, describing their residence as Cologne. Mr. von Delius told me that this was against instructions, but in order to save the detainees from their terrible fate to be sent to Dachau, he gave orders that passports as requested by me were issued. Consequently, I was able to arrange the emigration of thousands of these unfortunate people in the given time...  



c.150 pages in all, various sizes, some newspaper cuttings, various sizes, Cologne, Trier, Coblenz, Krefeld, Amsterdam, London and elsewhere, 1935-1958, where indicated, staining to one poem; together with various items mostly relating to Jacobi's wife Hildegard, including: a university document ("Livret universitaire individual") containing stamps of the Faculté de Droit, Paris; two copies of a printed doctoral dissertation 'Der Regress des Bürgen', each 43 pages, wrappers, Cologne 1934; two Jewish printed religious books, one inscribed by Hildegard Joseph; two untitled black and white photographs and a photographic plate; and an album with manuscript entries between 1898 and 1912

R. Boehling and U. Larkey, Life and Loss in the Shadow of the Holocaust: A Jewish Family's Untold Story (Cambridge, 2011)

Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing, where appropriate
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
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A REMARKABLE ARCHIVE SHEDDING LIGHT ON THE ACTIVITIES OF A LITTLE-KNOWN HERO OF THE HOLOCAUST.

In his capacity as director of the Emigration Couselling Office of the Hilfsverein der Juden in Deutschland, between the years 1935 and 1939, the Cologne lawyer Dr. Hans Jacobi was instrumental in saving the lives of thousands of Austrian Jewish refugees. Many of his courageous interventions are recorded in an extraordinary 10-page report on six Rheinland officials who had assisted him in saving the refugees. Fortunately, he was also able to save himself: but before being able later to practise as an emigration lawyer, he was interned at Onchan on the Isle of Man, where he was vetted using the testimonials - contained here - from various Rheinland synagogues. Jacobi was also a published poet, using the the pen name of Hans Schaffen; a number of his writings in autograph, typed and printed form are included here. A letter in the collection from Stephen Spender to Jacobi testifies to the regard in which his poetry was evidently held by his contemporaries.