Among these Mauthausen had the most brutal detention conditions.
The SS called MauthausenKnochenmuhle,or the bone grinder.
The camp was located on the edge of a granite quarry where camp inmates were sent to work.
The Stairs of Death at Mauthausen concentration camp, then and now.
The heavy stones would crush their limbs and bodies.
People died on these stairs every day.
Sometimes, the SS guards would force the exhausted prisoners to race up the stairs carrying blocks of stone.
Some prisoners, unable to bear the tortures of the camp, would willfully jump off the cliff.
Such suicides were frequent.
Today, the “Stairs of Death” form part of the guided tours at the Mauthausen Memorial.
Stones rolled under our wooden-soled sandals, and we were forced to keep moving at a very rapid pace.
The man who chose a stone found to be too small was out of luck.
And all of this went on at the rate of eight to ten trips per day.
The pace was infernal, without a second’s rest.
The Mauthausen quarry is now overgrown with trees and bushes.
Much of the camp site is also covered by residential areas built after the war.
There is a museum now and a visitor center.
Photo credit:United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Sources:Wikipedia/scrapbookpages.com/www.wien.gv.at
