Under the Jewish banner, 1941 anti-Soviet caricature

What it is

This is a black-and-white caricature from 1941. It shows a man in a peaked officer's cap gripping a large dark banner that carries outlined profile heads of several men. The Russian caption reads Under the Jewish banner. According to the record, the profiles include Marx, Engels, Lenin and Stalin, and the image adds Roosevelt and Churchill. The author is unknown. The image is antisemitic and anti-Soviet: it uses hostile stereotypes of Jews to attack Soviet leaders.

Why it matters

The caricature shows how the names of Marx and Engels were used in wartime propaganda decades after they died. Their images were linked to the Soviet state and to Jews in a single hostile image. It reveals the prejudice of its makers and the way political ideas were turned into racist symbols.

Look closer

• Who is shown holding the banner, and what does the caption suggest about the group he represents?
• Which real people are placed together here, and why might the artist connect them?
• What stereotypes does the image use, and what would a fair account of these men say instead?