Der Desinfektionsapparat in Mauthausen

Abstract

From 2021 to 2023, extensive restoration work was carried out on the disinfection machine in the cellar of the laundry barracks of the former Mauthausen concentration camp. This led first and foremost to intensive work on the device itself and secondly to new insights into the SS dealing with hygiene and disinfection issues within the concentration camps in general and in the Mauthausen concentration camp in particular. Two facilities were used to disinfect textiles in Mauthausen: a disinfection facility with a hot-air disinfestation process in the laundry barracks and a Zyklon B delousing chamber in Barrack 25. The article compares the two devices, asks about the reasons for installing two devices in one place and analyzes the installation process as well as the advantages and disadvantages of the devices. The aquisition and technical aspects of the facilities are compared with the installation of similar equipment in other concentration camps.

The article examines furthermore aspects of hygiene and disease control, their historical role models and architectural outcome. The everyday work of the prisoners in the laundry and the disinfection “commandos” are explainable via the traces left on the disinfection machine. Archival sources and survivors' accounts are used to provide as comprehensive an insight as possible into the everyday lives of the prisoners. Overall, the importance of hygiene measures for the smooth running of the camps and the health of both the detainees and the guards is explained through the story of a single device.

DOI: https://www.doi.org/10.57820/mm.comments.2024.05