Let’s get the bride out of the way first. I was leaving my flat late one morning and was surprised to see a bride and groom (or perhaps two actors playing bride and groom, leaving a townhouse down the road.

Two Good To Be True

I like to mention the local shops and restaurants that give friendly service in Bloomsbury and Kings Cross, the neighborhoods that my current flat is bordered by. I have had several very nice encounters with the staff of “La Dolce London,” a charming cafe just a brief walk from my flat. Their coffee and other offerings, as well as their customer service are all excellent. As you will see below they also have some clever decorating.

Ancient India-Living Traditions

The second good thing is the exhibit at the British Museum that looks at devotional art of three religions that have their roots in India-Buddhism, Jainism, and Hinduism. The period considered was 200 BC to 600 AD. It begins with a representation of an important figure from each faith tradition.

For those of us unfamiliar with the depth and intertwining of the three faiths, it is interesting to learn, for example, that Ganesha is a god revered by some in all three faiths, though primarily a Hindu god. A Tirthinkara is an enightened leader in Jainism. This figure looks something like a Buddha but has an an endless knot symbol in the middle of his chest.

Male Yaksha and Female Yakshi Nature Spirits

These ancient spirits were adopted by all three faiths and many Yakshis were given male consorts when they were adopted by the three faiths.

Vishnu and Shiva

These two are recognized as principal deities in Hinduism. As you will see below, Vishnu is represented in human form here while Shiva in a symbolic form.

This exhibit opens the door and the mind of those of us who are mostly unfamiliar with the traditions associated with the three faiths. I hope this small introduction may lead you into further exploration.

We Must Never Forget Evil and We Must Forgive

This is what i took away from my most recent visit to the Weiner Holocaust Library. It’s current exhibit, “Looted to Families, Nazi Theft and the Search for Restitution,” teach the lessons of never forgetting history and learning, through forgiveness. This was the story of the Wertheimer and Keitenhauser families. The Wertheimers were a Jewish family, the Keitenhausers were Austrians with a strong connection to the Nazi Party in Austria after the Anschluss.

The Wertheimer family were forced to sell their properties at a vastly reduced price. They could take very little with them. The Keitenhausers prospered with the head of the family, Josef,a Nazi Party member had responsibilities, including spying on his neighbors. He also secured a position as Head Teacher (principal, in US terms), replacing a man who was not a party member. As happened throughout Germany, Austria and all the Nazi occupied countries, the Wertheimer’s posessions that were left behind and looted by neighbors and among those posessions was a table that made it’s way to the Keitenhausers.

Auschwitz transfer list. A member of the Wertheimer family was on this list. None of these people survived.

Many years after the war, in the 2000s, Katherina Mayrhofer, an Austrian artist and great granddaughter of Josef Kaltenhauser Sr, found a table in the attic of the family home. She discovered the table was an item looted from the Wertheimers. She contacted Diana Jelinek, a Wertheimer descendant and her daughter, British artist Emily Davy. The two artists restored the table and had a new key cut for it.

The two artists restored these skirts from the pre-war era.

Handmade keepsake box belonging to Josef Kaitenhauser Sr.

If I could recommend one small exhbit space to everyone who visits London, it would be this small gallery at the Weiner Holocaust Library. Each exhibit reminds us of how Europe descended into madness and attempted genocide. But we are also reminded to be ever vigilant with our liberty and freedoms.

A Bit of Nature to Conclude

As I walked back from the Weiner Library, my mood was lifted by this view of the Kimpton Fitzroy Hotel through the ancient trees in Russell Square.