Objekt des Monats
Jedes Objekt in der Sammlung des Deutschen Auswandererhauses erzählt eine ganz persönliche Auswanderungs- oder Einwanderungsgeschichte. In dieser Rubrik stellen wir Ihnen jeden Monat ein anderes Objekt vor – eine Fotografie, ein Dokument oder ein persönliches Erinnerungsstück.
January 2023
Woodcarving, around 1903
Historical Context
The International Day of Education was established by the United Nations in December 2018 and was first celebrated on January 24, 2019, by its cultural and educational organization UNESCO. It highlights the necessity to improve educational equality worldwide, as 262 million children and young people still do not have access to schools at this point. The global community has therefore committed to ‘ensuring inclusive, equitable, and quality education for all by 2030.’
Short Biography
Christoph Diehl is born on March 12, 1891, in Sonnenberg, Wiesbaden. The son of a gardener begins early with a special hobby: he creates wood carvings. Christoph has great talent, as noted by American industrialist Thomas Hayward when he meets the boy during a trip to Germany in 1906. The entrepreneur promptly takes on the sponsorship of the fifteen-year-old. He brings him to Baltimore, gives him work in his company, and finances his attendance at the Maryland Institute, a school for art and design. However, the promising artist career ends abruptly in 1908: Christoph unexpectedly falls ill with typhus and passes away after three weeks of illness.
Significance of the Object
The wood carving made by Christoph Diehl is not only a unique memento from his life story but also a historical document regarding migration, reflecting a significant motivation for emigration: the hope for education and self-realization. Education is a fundamental human right; it enables individuals to improve their social, political, cultural, and economic situation.
Do You Also Have …
… a story of emigration or immigration in your family that you would like to share with the German Emigration Center together with the related objects and documents for its collection? Then please contact Dr. Tanja Fittkau by phone at +49 471 / 90 22 0 – 0
or by e-mail at: t.fittkau@dah-bremerhaven.de