This photograph shows six Stolpersteine [stumbling stones] embedded in the pavement in front of the residential building at Brahmsallee 13 by artist Gunter Demnig on July 22, 2007. The brass plate-covered concrete cubes measuring 10 x 10 cm remember three Jewish couples who lived at this address: Gretchen and Jona Fels from 1920 until 1935, Bruno and Irma Schragenheim from 1927 until 1936, and Moritz and Erna Bertha Bacharach from 1937 until the spring of 1939.

Demnig’s intention in placing these stones is to embed the names of the victims of National Socialism in the memory of people living today. He hopes they will start various kinds of discussions, thus continuously encouraging the study and discussion of National Socialist injustice. The first line which begins “here lived …” shows that these six Stolpersteine were laid at the last (freely chosen) place of residence of those named and not at their place of work (in which case the line would read “here worked …”). Their inscription also includes the person’s name, for women their birth name, their year of birth, and their fate (deported in 1941), the place of death, and – if known – the date of death. Some Stolpersteine such as that for Moritz and Erna Bacharach also mention particular circumstances. On the more recent stones, the artist consistently uses the term “murdered” [ermordet] as he did on these six, because the National Socialists intended the deaths of these individuals whether they were killed in the gas chambers of Auschwitz like Erna Bacharach or Gretchen Fels or died of disease or hunger in a ghetto like Jona Fels.

These six Stolpersteine are sponsored by the building’s current residents (120 EUR per stone in 2016) who also ensure the continued care and maintenance of their brass surfaces.