Badge with a yellow Star of David on a black circle worn by a Romanian Jewish woman

Star of David badge that 20 year-old Simona Weissmann was forced to wear in Piatra Neamt, Romania from 1941-1945. In November 1940, the fascist government of Romania of General Antonescu joined the Axis Alliance. They immediately put in place polices to persecute Jews, such as the requirement that Jews wear a Star of David badge2 on their clothing at all times. The antisemitic regime also supported increasingly violent attacks and pogroms against the Jewish population. No restrictions on access Simona Weissmann, was born in Piatra Neamt, Romania, on October 14, 1923, to Feiga (Fani) Sigler and Nisen David Weissmann, a veteran of World War I (1914-1918). They were an observant Jewish family and Simona and her two siblings, Angela, (1992-2003) and Berhard (d. 1993), were taught Hebrew. They lived in the Hangu region where her father and his two brothers were born. The family harvested fir trees. In November 1940, Romania, under the rule of the right wing General Ion Antonescu, joined the Axis Alliance. The regime immediately established restrictive anti-Jewish measures and encouraged the violent persecution of Jews in the already deeply antisemitic country. In 1944, Simona married Dr. Carl Iancovici; she has since remarried twice. Simona Nistor-Vianu is an artist and critic.