Jewish cemetery (Schopfloch)

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Jewish cemetery in Schopfloch, one of the largest in southern Germany

The Schopfloch Jewish Cemetery is a Jewish cemetery in Schopfloch , a market in the Ansbach district in Bavaria .

The cemetery is halfway between the center of Schopfloch and the district of Deuenbach across from Baderstrasse 10 and extends over 12,980 square meters . Originally there were around 1,600 gravestones on it .

history

Gravestone with the date of death February 27, 1938
Gravestone with the date of death August 25, 1938

The cemetery was occupied for over 300 years - from 1612 to 1937. However, tombstones with the date of death February 27, 1938 and August 25, 1938 can also be found there. According to an oral testimony of the stonemason Birgit Hähnlein-Häberleins, the reason for this is that they were subsequently set up in a festive ceremony with the Würzburg rabbi in 2011 after the now deceased Angelika Brosig found out that the two dead were contrary to Jewish customs do not own a tombstone. It was also used for burials of the Jewish communities Braunsbach , Hengstfeld , Schwäbisch Hall with Steinbach, Dünsbach , Gerabronn , Michelbach an der Lücke , Wiesenbach, Crailsheim with Goldbach and Ingersheim an der Jagst , Unterdeufstetten and Niederstetten . The costs for a burial at the Association cemetery in Schopfloch were calculated according to the assets of the deceased and borne by the Jewish community from which the deceased came. In addition, “an annual tax of 1 kreuzer and 6 kreuzer for 100 guilders assets per household” was levied for the maintenance of the cemetery in Schopfloch. According to the Talmud, the burial should take place immediately; In some cases, however, they waited for another death in this country in order to then bring both dead together to the Schopfloch cemetery. In this way one saved effort, time, road and bridge tariffs as well as the taxes that were due as soon as one crossed different domains. Because of this, the saying Wecha amm doada Juda fäahrd mr nedd nach Schopfi was created . In 1802 it was considerably expanded by acquiring the so-called "New Part", which is to the left of the entrance. During the National Socialist era , the Tahara House was completely destroyed by arsonists. The cemetery was also desecrated. After the Second World War , former NSDAP members of Schopfloch were obliged by the Allies to repair the damage, who then “erected the overturned gravestones in the summer of 1945 [...] under the supervision of the Schopfloch mayor.” From 1963, the cemetery was finally fully repaired. In the meantime, the regional association of the Israelite cultural communities in Bavaria is responsible for this cemetery. From 2005, Angelika Brosig, who died in 2013, was responsible for the documentation and care of the cemetery together with voluntary partners, whose activities Jutta Breitinger, an employee of the Schopfloch town hall, would like to continue in the year according to an oral statement.

Characteristics

Cemetery complex

The location of the cemetery shows some characteristics typical of Jewish cemeteries: For example, “are (or were a long time ago) [most of the cemeteries] outside of localities” because, on the one hand, they were often not tolerated by the non-Jewish locals in their vicinity and they on the other hand, were protected from grave desecration in this way by nature and the long and sometimes arduous way there. The plant was also "often in forests or on mountain tops" because the soil there was relatively cheap to acquire due to the scarce fertility. Another characteristic feature is the walling around by a wall or a fence and one or two gates. In addition, many Jewish cemeteries have a tahara hall, i.e. a morgue, in which the Chewra Kadisha , separated into men and women, prepares the burials: After washing and ritual cleansing with water, they are dressed in white robes . When the corpse was then placed in a simple wooden coffin, the burial followed after an officially fixed waiting period.

Tombstones

Originally there were around 1,600 tombstones there. However, the number of tombstones still preserved today fluctuates in the secondary literature, whereby the date of publication can of course also play a role: While Kraiss and Reuter and Schwierz assume 1356, Mayer and Eberhardt and Berger-Dittscheid give a number of 1172. According to Brosig, there are still 1200 preserved graves in the cemetery. Jutta Breitinger, who is now responsible for guided tours of the Jewish cemetery, speaks of 1,172 graves that have been preserved. The oldest gravestones are in any case located in the eastern area of ​​the Jewish cemetery; the oldest deciphered dates from 1580. The tombstones were placed relatively close to one another for reasons of space and almost all face eastwards towards Jerusalem. Their inscriptions show "names, the date of death and personal information about the dead (e.g. place of birth, date of birth, age, occupation, activities, etc.) in German and Hebrew, in the case of particularly pious people only in Hebrew". In addition, symbols engraved in the tombstone can indicate the status or special activities of the person buried there. Blessing priest hands symbolize that the burial there belongs to the Kohanim tribe . A jug or bowl on the tombstone identifies the dead as a Levite . The symbol of the knife on the tomb, however, means that the person buried was a mohel .

literature

  • Brosig, Angelika, Schopfloch , in: Reese, Gunther (ed.): Traces of Jewish life around the Hesselberg , vol. 6 (Small series of publications Hesselberg region), Unterschwaningen 2011, ISBN 978-3-9808482-2-0 , p. 88-93.
  • Eberhardt, Barbara / Berger-Dittscheid, Cornelia, Schopfloch , in: Kraus, Wolfgang u. a. (Ed.), More than stones… Synagogue Memorial Volume Bavaria, Vol. 2: Middle Franconia (Memorial Book of Synagogues in Germany 3, 2), Lindenberg im Allgäu 2010, pp. 597–613.
  • Kraiss, Eva Maria / Reuter, Marion, Bet Hachajim - House of Life. Jewish cemeteries in Württembergisch Franconia , Künzelsau 2003.
  • Mayer, Lothar, Jewish cemeteries in Middle and Upper Franconia , Petersberg 2012.
  • Schwierz, Israel, stone testimonies to Jewish life in Bavaria. A documentation , Munich 1988.

Web links

Commons : Jewish Cemetery  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g h i Eva Maria Kraiss, Marion Reuter: Bet Hachajim. House of life. Jewish cemeteries in Württemberg Franconia. Swiridoff Verlag, Künzelsau 2003, ISBN 3-89929-009-7 , p. 36.
  2. ↑ Handwritten notes by the author on the Day of Jewish Culture 2014 .
  3. ↑ n.a. , dignity reproduced. "Women in Judaism" topic of an event, in: Fränkische Landeszeitung (2014), No. 214, o. P.
  4. ↑ Mayer, Lothar: Jüdische Friedhöfe in Mittel- und Oberfranken , Petersberg 2012, p. 180f.
  5. ↑ a b c d Brosig, Angelika: Schopfloch , in: Reese, Gunther (ed.), Traces of Jewish life around the Hesselberg , vol. 6 (Small series of publications Hesselberg region), Unterschwaningen 2011, pp. 88–93.
  6. ↑ a b c Eberhardt, Barbara / Berger-Dittscheid, Cornelia: Schopfloch , in: Kraus, Wolfgang et al. (Ed.), More than stones ... Synagogue commemorative volume Bavaria , vol. 2: Middle Franconia (memorial book of synagogues in Germany 3, 2 ), Lindenberg im Allgäu 2010, pp. 597–613.
  7. ↑ a b Schwierz, Israel, Stone Testimonies to Jewish Life in Bavaria. A documentation , Munich 1988, p. 15.
  8. ↑ Schwierz, Israel, Stone Testimonies to Jewish Life in Bavaria. A documentation , Munich 1988, p. 15f.
  9. ↑ Schwierz, Israel, Stone Testimonies to Jewish Life in Bavaria. A documentation , Munich 1988, p. 18f.
  10. ↑ Schwierz, Israel, Stone Testimonies to Jewish Life in Bavaria. A documentation , Munich 1988, p. 182.
  11. ↑ Mayer, Lothar, Jüdische Friedhöfe in Mittel- und Oberfranken , Petersberg 2012, p. 180.
  12. ↑ Oral statement by Jutta Breitinger from July 23, 2014.
  13. ↑ Schwierz, Israel, Stone Testimonies to Jewish Life in Bavaria. A documentation , Munich 1988, p. 16f.
  14. ↑ Schwierz, Israel, Stone Testimonies to Jewish Life in Bavaria. A documentation , Munich 1988, pp. 15-17.

Coordinates: 49 ° 7 ′ 28.4 "  N , 10 ° 18 ′ 8.3"  E