Obj. ID: 43905
Jewish Funerary Art Jewish cemetery in Tykocin, Poland
According to ESJF European Jewish Cemeteries Initiative, the cemetery was established after the privilege was granted by Olbracht Gasztołd in 1522. During World War II, the Germans executed Jews and Poles at the cemetery. On September 10, 1943, Władysława Krysiewicz was shot dead because she was helping Jews. The destruction of the cemetery began around that time when, by order of the German authorities, some tombstones were used to pave roads. Some Poles who used tombstones for various purposes on their farms participated in the destruction process and continued to do so after the war. The cemetery was subsequently used for cattle grazing. In the period of the Polish People’s Republic, the land was used for a marketplace. A power line runs across the eastern edge. As a result of the destruction, only about 100 tombstones have survived in the cemetery, most of which are from the 19th century. These are mainly tombstones made of granite erratic boulders. More than a dozen tombstones are stored in the local museum.
The cemetery is partially fenced. A pre-war concrete wall about 1.7 m high is preserved on the northern and on some parts of the eastern sides. A metal wire mesh fence belonging to the adjacent household delineates the western border of the cemetery. The eastern border has a small section of concrete wall on the north-eastern corner and an old wire mesh fence, that needs repair, some elements of the mesh fence are broken. The southern side of the cemetery is unfenced.
The owner of the cemetery is the Foundation for the Preservation of Jewish Heritage. The facility is listed in the Municipal Register of Monuments and the Register of Immovable Monuments of the Podlaskie Voivodeship. Periodically, the cemetery is cleaned up by various organizations.
The cemetery is located within the irregularly shaped geodetic plot no. 1398 with an area of about 2.5 hectares.
Perimeter length: 696 metres
The cemetery is located in a field between 27 Maja and Holendry streets.