Obj. ID: 51071  Monument to Danish Jews who perished in Theresienstadt in the Western (New) Jewish Cemetery in Copenhagen, Denmark, 1946

Memorial Name

No official name

Who is Commemorated?

51 Danish Jews who died in Theresienstadt (Terezin)

Description:

The memorial is situated in the northwestern part of the cemetery. It is a rectangular area surrounded by cypress trees and benches.

A high granite pillar stands in the center, while four small blocks are placed in the corners of the plot.

The central pillar bears a Danish dedicatory inscription on its southern side and 51 names of Jews who died in Theresienstadt (Terezin) on three other sides. The last name on the eastern side was added later. Upper parts of all sides of the pillar feature a carved menorah. A bronze word שלום appears on the menorah on the southern front side, while bronze words יזכור, remember, appear on other three side. A bronze Star of David in the lower part of the front side divides the dedication from the words “honor be their memory.” The construction year, 1946 is written on the right side of the Star of David, and on its left side, there is a sign xn (probably the signature of the sculptor).

The corner blocks are inscribed with the eight disasters in the history of the Jewish people (in Hebrew), starting from the Biblical exile to Egypt and ending with the expulsion from Spain. (Of note, the list represents a “western European” view, featuring the burning of the Talmud in Paris in 1242, but omitting the Khmelnytskyi massacre in Ukraine in 1648-49.)

The grave of Dan Mosheh Uzan, who was killed in the terrorist attack on the Great Synagogue of Copenhagen on October 15, 2015 (see here), is situated near the memorial

Inscriptions

Danish:

Mindestenen her
er rejst for dem
af vore tros=
fæller der oktb=
1943
blev deporteret
til
Theresienstadt
og der bukkede
under for deres
lidelser
de döde i troen
paa gud og paa
retfærdighe=
dens sejr

xn 1946

ære være
deres minde

Translation: The memorial stone here is erected for those of our fellow believers who were deported to Theresienstadt in October 1943 and who succumbed to their sufferings, they died in faith in God and in the victory of justice.

Honored be their memory

Hebrew inscriptions on the corner blocks:

גלות מצרים

גלות עשרת השבטים

גלות בבל

גזירות אנטיוכוס

חורבן בית שני

מסעי הצלב

שרפת התלמוד

גרוש ספרד

Translation: Exile to Egypt; Exile of the Twelve Tribes; Babylon Exile; Evil Decrees of Antiochus; Destruction of the Second Temple; Crusades; Burning of the Talmud; Expulsion from Spain

Commissioned by

The Jewish community of Copenhagen