How did World War II interrupt Marc Chagall’s Bible illustration project?

Marc Chagall’s project to create a series of etchings illustrating the Bible was interrupted in 1939 by the outbreak of World War II and the death of his publisher, Ambroise Vollard.1

By the time the work was halted, Chagall had completed 66 of the planned plates. The project was later renewed in the postwar years, with the publisher E. Tériade picking up the commission, eventually allowing Chagall to complete a total of 105 plates by 1956.1