He Was
The story of my great-grandfather — German by origin, whose life was cut short by Stalinist repression. One photograph as an attempt to preserve the presence of a man they tried to erase.
Alexander Gass Ivanovich
“Certificate of Rehabilitation. A Document That Restores a Name”
An official certificate issued by the military prosecutor confirming the rehabilitation of my great-grandfather, Alexander Ivanovich Gass, executed in 1938. A document that records not only a crime, but a delayed return of justice.
Letter on the Issuance of a Death Certificate and the Return of a Rehabilitation Record
An official letter from the Security Service of Ukraine in the Kharkiv region to the daughter of Alexander Ivanovych Gass, informing her about the issuance of a death certificate and the return of his rehabilitation record. Received in 1994, during the period when the archives of repressed families were first opened in independent Ukraine.
Cause of Death: Execution by Shooting
The death certificate of Oleksandr Ivanovych Gass, issued in 1994 after the opening of Soviet repression archives. A document that legally records the execution of 29 September 1938.