A replica of the Anne Frank House, one of Europe’s most historical sites, will be available for New Yorkers to view right here in the Big Apple.
Based in Amsterdam, the Anne Frank House will open an exact replica of the hiding place where the young diarist wrote in her famous journal during the days of the Holocaust. It is named “Anne Frank: The Exhibition,” set to open in Union Square in January 2025.
The exhibit will immerse visitors in a full-scale recreation of the rooms where a teenage Anne, along with her parents, sister and four other Jews, spent two years hiding from Nazi capture during World War II. Anne, who could not attend school because she was in hiding, poured herself into her diary as the ravages and horrors of war continued outside.
The Center for Jewish History in Manhattan partnered with the Amsterdam-based museum on the project.
Telling the story of Anne Frank
Organizers designed the replica to be a complete recreation of the space in an Amsterdam attic, furnished as it would have been when the Frank family were forced into hiding.
The exhibit will take up over 7,500 square feet of space. Dozens of genuine artifacts will be on display, including Anne’s photo album, a typed and handwritten invitation from the young girl to a friend asking her to attend a film screening in her home, and Anne’s handwritten verses appearing in her friends’ poetry albums.
“Anne Frank’s words resonate and inspire today, a voice we carry to all corners of the world, nearly eight decades later. As a custodian of Anne’s legacy, we have an obligation to help world audiences understand the historical roots and evolution of antisemitism, including how it fueled Nazi ideology that led to the Holocaust,” Ronald Leopold, executive director of the Anne Frank House, said.
Throughout the exhibit, visitors will learn about Anne and everything she experienced during her short, tragic life. The journey starts from her early years in Frankfurt, Germany, through the rise of the Nazi regime and the family’s 1934 move to Amsterdam, the Netherlands, where Anne lived for 10 ten years.
The story continues through to Anne’s 1944 arrest and deportation to Westerbork, a large transit camp in the Netherlands, then to Auschwitz-Birkenau, the infamous concentration camp and killing center in Nazi-occupied Poland. It ends with her death at Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in Germany when she was just 15 years old.
Gavriel Rosenfeld, president of the Center for Jewish History, discussed the exhibit’s timing, as it coincides with the 80th anniversary of Auschwitz’s liberation.
“As we approach the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz in January, Anne Frank’s story becomes more urgent than ever,” he said. “In a time of rising antisemitism, her diary serves as both a warning and a call to action, reminding us of the devastating impact of hatred. This exhibition challenges us to confront these dangers head-on and honor the memory of those lost in the Holocaust.”
The exhibit will open on International Holocaust Remembrance Day, Jan. 27, 2025. It is for children ages 10 and older. Tickets start at $21; $16 ages 17 and younger.
For more information, visit annefrankexhibit.org.
