A Walk in the Chisinau Jewish Cemetery

Walking through this Jewish cemetery, I feel deeply moved by the shared human desire for hope and peace, especially for those who have endured profound turmoil. The Jewish cemetery in Chisinau, originally called the New Cemetery, proves the long history of the Hebrew people in this region. The city’s cemetery offers a unique view of its 200-year history, including pogroms and evidence of its destroyed section.

History of the Jewish Cemetery

The walking map displayed below starts in Alunelul park or near the corner of Eugen Coca Street and Milano. This area is across the street from the Zity Mall. Here is the link to my Google map. The park formerly hosted over half of the cemetery about 75 years ago, now only a few stones and memorials grace the location.

Even without the destroyed sections, this cemetery is the largest one in Moldova. The park, apartment buildings, and houses that the Soviet authorities allowed in the 1950s stand on the former cleared cemetery, starkly contrasting the land’s former purpose.

The Memorials

Having visited other cities where Pogroms occurred, this site is unique for commemorating and recognizing this tragic event. The two memorials remember the tragedy 90 and 100 years later with statements. In 1903, the non-Jews supported a Pogrom in which 49 people died and injured over 500 while allowing one-third of the buildings in the city belonging to the Jewish community to burn.^[1]https://www.ipn.md/en/victims-of-1903-pogrom-commemorated-in-chisinau-7967_1104055.html Despite this pogrom, the Nazi control of the city from 1941 to 1944 killed far more than this and made the now Central market area a Jewish Ghetto fenced off as a prison.^[2]excellent write up: https://www.exutopia.com/abandoned-synagogue-moldova-chisinau-ghetto/ The Jewish inhabitants of this city have faced numerous phases of trauma.

The 1944 aerial photo of the cemetery shows the importance of the memorial area. A building marked the entry area from the road during that period.^[3]From CIMITIRELE EVREIEȘTI ALE ORAȘULUI CHIȘINĂU. CONSIDERAȚII PRELIMINARE [Jewish Cemeteries of the city of Chisinau. Preliminary considerations] Sergius Ciocanu, 2022

The memorial area speaks of the former graveyard at the park. The nearby stumps of trees mark historic trees that were most likely planted in the cemetery’s early years. I wondered how many deeply pious and well-respected people were buried here previously, only for their graves to be plowed under. The stumps show the lasting of time and hint at Isaiah 11:1’s prophecy: There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit. These stumps show rings marking them over 175 years old.

Gravestones lay behind the memorial yet on the slight hill on the western side of Alunelul Park, others lay dormant. These gravestone elements lay eerily exposed on the ground, as if the park had only half finished its landscaping.

Former Entrances to Jewish Cemetery

As one walks up Milano Street, the upper level becomes cobbled, and the houses on the left buttress the cemetery. When I looked between the houses, I saw former entrances and paths to the cemetery. The first part of this wall shows Hebrew writing from a former gravestone. Despite the modern facade, the area resists change.

Exterior Wall and Entrance to the Jewish Cemetery

Walking up Milano Street and following the curve right, I observed a long wall with green climbing vines. I realized the cemetery caretakers made the wall from the many gravestones taken from the park. When walking on the interior side of the wall, Hebrew writing is evident on some stones.

Path to Funeral Synagogue

As one enters the cemetery, turn left to head to the Funeral Synagogue. The cemetery is quite isolated, so it’s best to go with another person to visit these sites (also, dogs seemed to be nearby, but we only heard them). On the right of this path lays the grave of a WW II hero with a propeller from an airplane.

Former Synagogue

The path to the Synagogue is clear of bushes, and even around the building, the overgrowth has been cleared.^[4]some sites have it overgrown and also unlocked, not the case now. See https://www.exutopia.com/abandoned-synagogue-moldova-chisinau-ghetto/ The interior of the building is not accessible.

Jewish Graves

The older section of the Chisinau Jewish cemetery, which seemed to be farther in or near the synagogue, had Hebrew writings on the graves. Then, in the last 70 years, the graves detail their Russian and Hebrew memories and some included Romanian. Walking through this cemetery transported my wife and me back to a historic community. We remembered the many Jews who lived here and sought a peaceful life, though many did not achieve it. While there I took a walk through the other graves. observed.

The experience was truly humbling, and I realized how unjust persecution takes a toll on a community. Still, the Hebrew community attempted to make the best of their situation and, in the end, a safe place for burial.^[5]pics from five years ago are found here: https://gorelik.net/2019/03/04/chisinau-jewish-cemetery/

This cemetery shows the great effort to instill a memory for these departed ones, which gives visitors a pause to consider their lives and community. As I reflect on these many who have passed, I lament that these Hebrews most likely only attempted to follow the Old Testament. Still, they never fully embraced the many prophecies about a Messiah who, much like them, suffered yet offered hope and forgiveness to all people, as seen in Isaiah 53.