Actually they were supposed to be making toothpaste and soap. However, the cellar of the inmates’ canteen was also a perfect place to produce explosives. The camp resistance had chosen Pawel Lysenko for the task. A lieutenant of the Red Army, he had attended the medical faculty in Tomsk, and on account of his expertise in the field of chemistry was considered the right man for the job. He had been committed to Buchenwald as a prisoner of war in 1943 under a false name. During the initial experiments with explosives he injured himself severely. Finally, however, he succeeded in building a number of grenades. After fleeing from a death march, he rejoined the Red Army and participated in the liberation of Prague. Later he worked as a chemistry teacher.
