Rosa Andriesse was the daughter of Barend Andriesse and Mirjam Colaço Osorio. Rosa married in 1904 to Isidore Elias, who died before the war. Before Rosa and Isidore lived in Breda, they lived in Tilburg. Rosa kept a non-orthodox Jewish home.
Rosa was remembered as a "very special and artistic personality". An impressive painting made in 1902 by the portrait painter Simon Maris shows her as a beautiful, redhaired, young woman. Rosa loved art and antiques and spoke English, German, French and Italian. She might have made a career as a professional pianist, but declined because "this was not the kind of thing done in her circle".
During the German occupation in 1942 her house and all her belongings were seized. She lived for a short while with her child, but not wanting to be a burden she took up residence in a small old-age home. After deciding she did not want to go into hiding, she took her own life by an overdose of medicine. Rosa convinced that this would enable her (grand)children to go into hiding or try to flee to the free world.
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