During the Second World War, this yad (pointer) was deposited with Lippmann, Rosenthal & Co, the bank which carried out the theft of Jewish assets, in Amsterdam. Records examined in 1993 show that it was brought by 'L.M. van Esso'. This may be the firm of L.M. van Esso jeweller specialising in gold and silver and clocks.
The yad (pointer) was shipped to Germany during the war and was later returned to the Netherlands, to the Ministry of Finance's CADSU (Centraal Afwikkelingsbureau Duitse Schade Uitkeringen). There it was assumed that the original owner had not survived and since no family members could be found the yad was given to a museum. Commissie Joods Erfgoed investigated the provenance of the yad extensively in 1993 and 1994, as did Eelke Muller for the museum investigation 1940-1945 in 1999. It seems likely that the yad belonged to the inventory of N.V. L.M. van Esso, purveyors of gold, silver and clocks. The jeweller's shop was run by Meijer van Esso, son of Levie Meijer van Esso (who died in 1931). In 1941, Meijer van Esso, a Jew, was prevented from running his business and the firm was placed in charge of a non-Jew, a Verwalter. In 19 September 1943, the business closed down. Meijer van Esso tried to escape to Switzerland with his family but was caught in Cologne. Three family members were sent to Auschwitz and killed. One daughter survived the war. She returned to the Netherlands from Ravensbrück concentration camp via Sweden and emigrated to the United States with her family. Two clips are attached to this silver yad , one large and one small. Both probably belonged to a different object. When this ensemble was combined is not known. The yad has a Hebrew inscription: 'This silver pointer was donated by Esther, wife of Salomo Kats, in the year 5577 [1817] for the new Torah'. The inscription on the large clip states: 'Given by Pinchas Levy and his wife to Briel community to mark the barmitzvah of their son Eliezer in the year 5638 [1878]'.
