The Gianfranco Moscati collection, donated to the Imperial War Museum on 20 February 2007, is a significant archive of material previously unseen in the UK, documenting the persecution of the Jews during the Second World War.  It is an extensive private collection of letters and memorabilia and comprises nearly 1500 items  - including letters, telegrams, travel documents, yellow stars, photographs and other personal memorabilia.
 
Gianfranco Moscati was born in Milan in 1924. During the German occupation of Italy during the Second World War he was forced to flee to Switzerland to avoid Nazi persecution. After the war Signor Moscati returned to Italy and settled in Naples, and started collecting material relating to the experiences of Jewish families and individuals who had not been able to escape the persecution. Today the collection is a major resource of international renown.

Signor Moscati has chosen to deposit the collection at the Imperial War Museum to ensure its long-term preservation and to make it available to the general public as well as to historians and students who regularly use the IWM’s collections and archives for academic research.  A small number of items from the Moscati collection have already gone on display in the Holocaust Exhibition, and further artefacts and documents will be inserted into the Exhibition as part of the ongoing replenishment of its showcases.