Rudolf Spanner

Rudolf Spanner was a German doctor at the Danzig Anatomical Institute during World War II.

Spanner designed, on his own initiative, a process to produce soap from human fat in 1943-44 and a limited quantity of the soap was produced on his order to clean autopsy rooms. Allegations of large scale human soap production is a myth with origins dating back to World War I. However, it is now accepted that Spanner used human fat from patients at a mental institution in Danzig to produce a small amount of soap.