Obj. ID: 50766
Jewish Funerary Art Jewish cemetery in Szydłów, Poland
According to ESJF European Jewish Cemeteries Initiative, the cemetery is located in the western part of the town, around 100 m from the city walls, on the northern side of Kielecka Street, across the Cieka river. The cemetery is located within the boundaries of plot no. 641 with an area of 0.83 hectares.
The cemetery was established no later than in the second half of the 15th century. The first mention of the cemetery was in 1470 when the rights for it were granted by Kazimierz Jagiellończyk.
At the beginning of the 20th century, the cemetery was surrounded by a stone wall. In 1930, the area was at capacity, however the authorities of the Jewish community in Szydłów did not plan to establish a new cemetery.
During World War II, the cemetery became a burial place for the victims of the Holocaust, including the ones killed during the liquidation of the ghetto in 1942 and those murdered in 1943.
The cemetery was severely devastated. According to the report of the Presidium of the Municipal National Council in Szydłów, in 1946 there were still 1,141 “completely neglected” graves at the cemetery, and at that time the area was used as a pasture for farm animals. The tombstones and the wall were gradually dismantled by some inhabitants of Szydłów and its surroundings.
In 2017-2018, the Nissenbaum Family Foundation built a partial metal and concrete fence around the site. Periodic cleaning works are conducted by members of the Society of the Friends of the Szydłów Region. The owner of the cemetery is the City and Municipality of Szydłów.
In the Regional Museum in Szydłów, there are a dozen or so tombstones in various conditions. The oldest obe dates back to 1628-1629, and there is a miniature tombstone belonging to Gerszon Josef’s son, Awraham Aharon Podolski, who died on January 11, 1938.
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