A Paper Monument – The Exhibition about the Arolsen Archives

The exhibition traces the history of the Arolsen Archives, from its origins as a tracing service in 1948 to its work in digital remembrance today

Tracing missing persons, clarifying fates, and documenting Nazi crimes – learn more about the work of the Arolsen Archives by visiting “A Paper Monument,” our exhibition in Bad Arolsen. Redesigned in the spring of 2025, the exhibition tells the story of how the world’s largest archive on the victims and survivors of Nazi persecution came into being. It also sheds light on the role and the work of the Arolsen Archives today.

The Exhibition: A Paper Monument

How do you find missing persons when millions of people are searching for information and the relevant historical events are growing more distant with each passing year? How did today’s Arolsen Archives come into existence? Who used the archives in the early years, and who can access their holdings today? What role can an archive play in the process of coming to terms with guilt and the provision of compensation? How can we shape a modern, digital culture of remembrance today? These questions are explored in the exhibition “A Paper Monument. The History of the Arolsen Archives.”

Take a closer look
A Paper Monument – The Exhibition about the Arolsen Archives. Source: Arolsen Archives

The exhibition shows very vividly how the Arolsen Archives reunited people or clarified their fates in the aftermath of the terrible crimes committed by the Nazis. This task remains important today because subsequent generations have a deep-seated need for certainty. Facing up to the Holocaust and coming to terms with it is part of our identity – it is non-negotiable.

Monika Grütters, Minister of State for Culture and the Media (until November 2021) in her speech at the opening on June 18, 2019

The Exhibition Catalog

Packed with pictures, informative graphics, and concise texts, the catalog describes how an organization that started out as an international tracing service became the world’s largest archive on Nazi persecution. The exhibition catalog can be downloaded free of charge. Please note: The digital version dates from 2019. The content and presentation of the exhibition were overhauled in May 2025.

Download now
Exhibition catalog for the exhibition “A Paper Monument.” Source: Arolsen Archives

Your Visit

The permanent exhibition can be visited free of charge at Schloßstraße 10 in Bad Arolsen, close to the town’s baroque palace. Public and private guided tours are available; for private tours, advance booking is required. Follow the link below for all the information you need to know before your visit, including how to register in advance.

Plan your visit
View of the exhibition “A Paper Monument” in Bad Arolsen. Source: Arolsen Archives