Abstract
This paper presents a pilot project conducted in collaboration with the Fondazione CDEC to shed light on the historical dynamics of the arrests and deportations of Jews from Italy to foreign concentration camps between 1943 and 1945. Led by a multidisciplinary team, including a Digital Humanities expert, an archivist, a GIS developer, and an education manager, the project aimed to rework archival information into data visualisation models utilising a subset of data from the CDEC LOD dataset of the victims of the Holocaust in Italy to construct detailed visual representations of deportation routes. Drawing inspiration from previous projects like the Atlas of Nazi-Fascist Massacres and research on Holocaust testimonies, this project sought to create interactive maps, network and graphs illustrating the paths of forced transfers endured by arrested Jews, particularly focusing on those born or arrested in Milan. Despite challenges such as incomplete or imprecise data, the team managed to reconstruct deportation routes and classify transport convoys, enhancing the understanding of this dark period in history. The visualisations, along with detailed repositories and links provided on GitHub, serve as valuable research tools for both scholarly and educational purposes, offering users varying levels of granularity to explore historical events and timelines. Through meticulous data analysis and visualisation techniques, this project contributes to ongoing efforts to preserve and understand the tragic events of the Holocaust, emphasizing the importance of archival work and interdisciplinary collaboration in historical research.