The Mauritius Exile Collection

The Association of Former Mauritius Detainees, based in Israel, contacted former Mauritius detainees and their children (the second generation), to compile the collection. The collection includes items created by the would-be immigrant refugees en route from Europe to Mandate Palestine, in detention at Haifa and Atlit, en route to Mauritius and as exiles while interned in detention camps there. artifacts, photographs, documents, letters, and artworks.<br> Content includes: <u>artifacts</u>, mainly decorative items and utensils, toys, games, jewelry and souvenirs, handcrafted of local materials such as wood, shell, and fiber; <u>photographs</u> of individuals, groups, events, architectural and natural sites, and documentary photos of their journeys; <u>documents</u> such as diaries, poetry written on the island, programs of cultural events, maps, transcripts of speeches; <u>letters</u> including official British administrative communications, personal correspondence with family and friends abroad delivered by the International Red Cross, written communications with Jewish organizations and communities overseas; <u>artworks</u> by professional and amateur artists, including portraits, landscapes, sketches and caricatures made during their detention; <u>also</u>: postwar memoirs, articles and publications about the years in exile.