Nazi-Looted Torah Scroll Fragment Sells for $8,500 in Oslo

Translated & summarized from Maariv by baba

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Hebrew · 4 newsrooms covering

A Torah scroll fragment, looted by Nazis and sent to Germany, was sold at an Oslo auction for $8,500, exceeding its estimated value. The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the sale, and Jewish groups are calling for its return to heirs. Norway's adoption of the Washington Conference Principles in 2024 underscores the need to return such artifacts to successor Jewish communities.

The story in 5 lines · by baba

A Nazi-looted Torah scroll fragment sold for $8,500 at an Oslo auction.
The sale price was over four times the highest estimated value.
The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the auction.
Jewish organizations are demanding the fragment's return to its rightful heirs.
Norway adopted principles in 2024 for returning Nazi-confiscated cultural property.

Nazi-Looted Torah Scroll Fragment Sells for $8,500 in Oslo — Editorial illustration generated by baba News, not a photograph of the event.

A fragment of a Torah scroll, looted by SS soldiers during the Nazi era and sent to Germany as a souvenir, was sold at auction in Oslo, Norway, for $8,500. This price was more than four times the highest estimate for the item. The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs has condemned the sale, and Jewish organizations are demanding the fragment be returned to its rightful heirs.

For decades, the fate of the scroll fragment remained unknown until it reappeared on the art and historical artifacts market. It became a lucrative commercial item for collectors interested in Third Reich history. The sale highlights the importance of ongoing international efforts to prevent trade in Holocaust-era items, according to Taylor, who noted that Norway adopted the Washington Conference Principles on Nazi-Confiscated Art in 2024. This document explicitly states that assets owned by Jewish communities are not private collectibles but integral to the Jewish people's collective and religious memory, and should be returned to successor institutions or communities.

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