The Mount of Olives is a mountain ridge east of and adjacent to Jerusalem’s Old City and was named after the olive groves that once covered its slopes. The southern part of the Mount was the Silwan necropolis, attributed to the ancient Judean Kingdom. The mount has been used as a Jewish cemetery for over 3,000 years and holds approximately 150,000 graves, making it central in the tradition of Jewish cemeteries. Several key events throughout Jesus’s life, as related in the Gospels, took place on the Mount of Olives. In the Acts of the Apostles, it is described as the place that Jesus ascended to heaven. Because of its association with both Jesus and Mary, the mount has been a Christian worship site since ancient times and is currently a major pilgrimage site for Catholics, the Eastern Orthodox, and Protestants. The top of the hill is occupied by At-Tur, a former village that is now a neighborhood of East Jerusalem.
Site Tag: Cemetery
Old Safed Cemetery
The Safed Old Jewish Cemetery is one of the oldest cemeteries in Israel. The cemetery has been used for hundreds of years as a burial place, including important people and important Jewish religious leaders. The cemetery is located along the western slope of Safed on the slope of Mount Canaan near the Amud River.
HaShomrim Cemetery
In 1936 The Hashomerim Association, also known as The Eretz Israel Guardians Association, established a cemetery for its members. Established in July 1933, The HaShomerim Association was a guard and labor organization that identified with the labor movement and fought for organized Jewish protection.
The association was intended to serve as the local legal arm of the defense organization. Members of the association were members of the workers’ union and when they established the organization, they also wanted to organize their activities as a trade union. At first, the members of the association operated in the north, but later expanded their activities to the center and southern areas. After the establishment of the State of Israel, the association became a professional-national guarding organization and in 1958 the organization had about 400 members.
The cemetery, which was only open for members of the association, was designed by Moshe Yaffe, Alexandar Zaid’s friend, and is the only one of its kind. The names of the members of the organization who were not buried at the site are engraved at the entrance:
Boaz Persov was the first to be buried in the cemetery, but each person has a unique story and history of how they became involved in the association.
Images Attribution: צילום:ד”ר אבישי טייכר, CC BY 2.5 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5>, via Wikimedia Commons
Fülöp Wimmer’s Grave
One of the most peculiar tombs of the Jewish cemetery belongs to Fülöp Wimmer. The tall column as well as the stone memorial with hemp leaves together refer to his profession. He was the director of Szeged Hemp Weaver Company for over 40 years and was President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Szeged. Fülöp Wimmer was one of the most influential hemp industrialist of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy. Grave location: Parcel 90, line 3, grave 7
The Holtzer Family Crypt
The crypt of the Holtzer family is one of the extraordinary, beautiful Art Nouveau tombs of the Szeged Jewish cemetery. Despite its ruinous state it still demonstrates the once outstanding social and economical stance of the family. Tivadar Holtzer, establisher of the first football
team and football pitch in town. Crypt location: Parcel 62, line 2, grave 2
Grave of Dr. Várhelyi Rósa Izsó’s
Dr. Várhelyi Rósa Izsó was the first Jewish lawyer in the city, president of the Jewish community. His Art Deco-sytle grave is a monumental memorial closing down the end of the first main road of the cemetery. Dr Izsó Rósa (Rosenberg) (1842–1918) was a famous president of the Szeged Jewish Community, a well-known public figure and the first Jewish lawyer in the town of Szeged. He was member of the committee of 12 people responsible for rebuilding the city after the Great Flood of 1879. His house is still standing next to the National Theatre at 4 Stefánia Street. Grave location: Parcel 24, line 0, grave 2
Memorial of Mrs. Mária Kárász
Among the most important tombs of the cemetery, we find the Szivessy family memorial. The family was an outstanding patron of arts and culture, having several outstanding members, such as Mária. Mrs. Mária Kárász was a leading socialite and rests beside her daughter, Judit Kárász. Memorial location: Parcel 12, line 2, grave 1
Grave of Graphic Artist Ármin Tardos-Taussig
The Jewish cemetery of Szeged is the final resting place of numerous outstanding artists of Szeged, including graphic artist Ármin Tardos-Taussig. The inscription is situated on the eastern side of his gravestone made of red limestone. The letters, which are delicately and artistically shaped, protrude from the engraved surface of his memorial. Although his wife’s name is also on the gravestone, she was not buried here. This location of this grave is: Parcel 71, line 1, grave 1
Márk Pick’s Grave
Márk Pick’s, world-famous salami maker’s simple, obelisk-shaped gravestone can be found in the Jewish cemetery of Szeged.
Márk Pick (Szeged, 1843 – Budapest, 1892) started his career as a sales assistant, and then he became a tradesman in 1869. He worked as a corn-merchant from 1870 until the ‘80s. He also tried small-scale salami production from the mid ‘70s. This location of this grave is: Parcel 6, line 12, grave 16
Symbols in the cemetery
Symbols bear a great significance in Jewish art, which are manifested in the Jewish cemetery of Szeged, having numerous richly decorated tombstones, representing different artistic styles of distinctive eras. In certain cases, the form of the tombstone itself is a symbol. These symbols as well as the epitaphs based on old traditions serve an important basis of information about the deceased person, Jewish religion and the Jews of Szeged.
