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The Isle of Barra is the largest island in the Outer Hebrides, a chain of storm-tossed islands that defies the Atlantic like a bulwark off Scotland's west coast. You have to love the harsh weather of the rugged island, where even in midsummer temperatures rarely exceed 20 degrees; but if you decide to travel to Barra in the elsewhere hot month of July with your turtleneck sweater and rainproof jacket, you can walk for miles on one of the most beautiful beaches in the world, your nose in the wind, the cries of the sea birds in your ears. You may not meet a soul for hours, you can devote yourself entirely to the wild spectacle offered by cliffs, sea and clouds, and then in the evening sit by the fireplace in one of the small hotels, with a whiskey in hand. And of course a good book.

There are probably few people in this country who knew the island better than Isabel von Papen, and it could well be that if you had asked her what you should write about once it no longer existed, she would have replied, "Oh, write something about Barra instead!"

On April 28, 2023, Isabel von Papen died after a long, serious illness. A graduate librarian, she was far more than just the head of the library of the Kassel Museum of Sepulchral Culture. Since February 1, 1997, just five years after the opening of the museum, she had put her knowledge, patience and strength into the service of this library, which is so important for all interested people, researchers and colleagues.

I had known her for 23 years and still remember very well the first time I met her. When I urgently needed literature on the history of the coffin, she helped me immediately and, although we had only been talking for half an hour, she gave me one of the last copies of the most important publication on the subject at that time, "From the Tree of the Dead to the Designer Coffin". I was extremely impressed by her kindness and helpfulness, and if I needed anything in the way of literature or references during the last two decades, I could absolutely rely on Isabel von Papen.

The library was her sanctuary and anyone who dared to disturb anything there could expect a thunderstorm that would have done justice to the weather on the Isle of Barra.

She not only managed the extensive collection, but regularly wrote reviews of new arrivals – she just took every book seriously.

Isabel was also a fantastic connoisseur of film, and it was in the articles of the "Large Encyclopedia of Funeral and Cemetery Culture" dealing with cinematic aspects that her detailed and wide-ranging knowledge was incorporated.

Her death tears a gap, hardly tangible in its dimensions, in the small crowd of those who really have an idea of the sepulchral culture in all its facets, especially as far as the available literature is concerned.

The Isle of Barra was Isabel's place of longing, and so it is probably in her spirit to depict not her portrait, but the beach she loved so much and where she found inner peace in the face of a noisy, superficial world. One may wish that she saw this picture before her on her last journey.

Dr. Andreas Ströbl

If you do not yet have a vocational or academic degree and would like to orientate yourself, or if a compulsory internship is planned as part of your studies/vocational training, we look forward to receiving your unsolicited application. We will also be happy to provide you with an indication of the area in which you would like to work.

You will be assigned to one contact person and will gain insight into all areas of the company. In addition, you will be involved in the operation of the museum.