This was taken in an ex-bunker which used to be populated by Jewish inmates. Laid before you is a side-on view of the middle bunk of a strip of beds. Each bunk, which is just under the size of a normal single, housed three people. Each bed unit had nine occupants overnight, with a shred of a blanket for each bed. This, remember, in a place where the temperatures would regularly hit minus 30° during winter.
Nine may have slept to each unit, but on average only about seven woke up the next morning.
It is important to note that the conditions in this particular barrack were not typical of the general living standards of the inmates at Birkenau - the majority slept in a newer and different building design, and were far worse off than those who were housed here in relative luxury.
