The preservation of the funerary traditions of a religious minority: Jewish cemeteries in Europe

Authors

  • Joachim Jacobs Architect. Jacobs & Hübinger
DOI: https://doi.org/10.6018/rmu.438121

Abstract

This article gives a brief outline of the development of Jewish cemeteries in Europe since antiquity up to today. It focuses less on gravestones than on the positioning, layout and later design of these burial places. Jewish cemeteries reflect the ever changing situation of a religious and social minority within a sometimes tolerant, but mostly intolerant environment. It’s a history of separation and integration, of retaining tradition or assimilation. O two millennia a core of Jewish belief in afterlife and coping with death and burial was kept. Their upkeep is a gigantic task, as these ‘Houses of Life’ are a testimony to a minority of early Europeans, who connected the continent following the collapse of the civilisation of antiquity.

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References

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Mahmoud, M. (2020). Spain finds Cemetery of Andalusia Backed To 1,300 Years Ago. Leaders. Culture & Art. November 19. https://www.leaders-mena.com/?s=Tauste.

Published
19-12-2021
How to Cite
Jacobs, J. (2021). The preservation of the funerary traditions of a religious minority: Jewish cemeteries in Europe. Murcian Journal of Anthropology, (28), 123–138. https://doi.org/10.6018/rmu.438121