Unterer Friesenberg cemetery
The Israelitische Friedhof Unterer Friesenberg is the oldest existing Jewish cemetery in Zurich and one of the two burial places of the Israelitische Cultusgemeinde Zurich . It is located in the Friesenberg district in the southwest of the city on the corner of Friesenbergstrasse and Margaretenweg, near the Friesenberg station of the Uetlibergbahn .
history
The Israelitische Cultusverein founded in 1862, from which the Israelitische Cultusgemeinde Zurich later emerged, acquired the area for the first part of the Unterer Friesenberg cemetery in 1866 on what was then still a remote area. In 1888 a second area to the southwest was purchased and added to the existing cemetery. In 1891 the Tahara House was built according to plans by the architects Alfred Chiodera and Theophil Tschudy , who also built the synagogues in Zurich and St. Gallen. In order to enlarge the cemetery one more time, the Israelitische Cultusgemeinde bought a plot of land south of the cemetery in 1925, but the city of Zurich refused to use this area as a cemetery. In 1926, the community exchanged this parcel for a plot of land more than twice as large, on which the Oberer Friesenberg cemetery was built in 1952 .
Area and buildings
The ground plan of the Unterer Friesenberg cemetery consists almost of an isosceles triangle . In contrast, the network of paths divides the grave fields into rectangular areas. The two stages in the creation of the cemetery can be recognized by the two axes that branch off from Friesenbergstrasse.
The lower, eastern axis leads first to the abdication hall, which is built in a historicizing style and is characterized by the large round windows and the rich ornaments in exposed brick technology. The stained glass windows with flower ornaments and a colorful coffered ceiling decorate the interior of the abdication hall. Behind the polygonal structure, the route axis leads into the older part of the cemetery and ends at the border with Margaretenweg and the Uetlibergbahn line.
The younger, upper axis runs parallel to the lower axis and leads to a small forum. The cemetery is only slightly shielded from the surrounding houses, so that the visitor can see the suburban surroundings well. Some of the graves are kept simple and some are individually designed. The yew and thuja trees , which in pairs border several gravestones, are striking .
Graves of important personalities
The Unterer Friesenberg cemetery is the final resting place of:
- Richard Beer-Hofmann , 1866–1945, writer (grave no. 2008)
- Felix Salten , 1860–1945, writer, creator of the Bambi figure (grave no. 2487)
- Joseph Schmidt , 1904–1942, singer (grave no. 2231)
literature
- Norbert Loacker , Christoph Hänsli: Where Zurich comes to rest. The cemeteries of the city of Zurich. Orell Füssli, Zurich 1998, ISBN 3-280-02809-4 .
- Daniel Foppa: Famous and forgotten dead in Zurich's cemeteries. 2nd, supplemented and updated edition. Limmat, Zurich 2003, ISBN 3-85791-446-7 .
Web links
- Unterer Friesenberg cemetery on the website of the Israelitische Cultusgemeinde Zurich
- Unterer Friesenberg cemetery on the Alemannia Judaica website with photos
Individual evidence
- ↑ Norbert Loacker, Christoph Hänsli: Where Zurich comes to rest. 1998, pp. 57 and 61.
- ↑ Norbert Loacker, Christoph Hänsli: Where Zurich comes to rest. 1998, pp. 56-59.
Coordinates: 47 ° 21 '51 " N , 8 ° 30' 23" E ; CH1903: 680657 / 246473