The Office: Assigning Codes

Offices assign numbers, addresses, and sometimes even names. In the 19th century, Jews were especially affected by such government administrative measures. They were often subject to special rules governing the issuance of passports, the registration of property, or the collection of statistical data. This section of the exhibition tells a brief history of the passport, explains Berlin’s unique system of house numbers, and critically examines the significance of statistical surveys to German-Jewish history.