Rund 12.000 sichtbare antike Grabsteine, die in den Mauern des Alten Jüdischen Friedhofs im Jüdischen Viertel oder Josefov von Prag, der Hauptstadt der Tschechischen Republik / Tschechien, eingepfercht sind, verbergen etwa 100.000 Bestattungen in bis zu 12 unterirdischen Ebenen. Der Friedhof war fast 350 Jahre in Gebrauch und als die Schichten montiert wurden, wurden einige alte Grabsteine auf die neue Oberfläche gehoben. Die frühesten tragen nur hebräische Inschriften, aber spätere Beispiele weisen Symbole auf den Namen, Charakter oder Beruf des Verstorbenen hin.
3522 x 2348 px | 29,8 x 19,9 cm | 11,7 x 7,8 inches | 300dpi
Aufnahmedatum:
22. Juli 2006
Ort:
Old Jewish Cemetery, Jewish Quarter or Josefov, Prague, Czechia / Czech Republic.
Weitere Informationen:
Dieses Bild kann kleinere Mängel aufweisen, da es sich um ein historisches Bild oder ein Reportagebild handel
Prague, Czechia / Czech Republic: around 12, 000 ancient gravestones are crammed tightly together in the Old Jewish Cemetery in the Czech capital’s Jewish Quarter or Josefov - with around 100, 000 burials beneath them in up to 12 underground layers. Europe’s second oldest Jewish graveyard was used for nearly 350 years until 1787 and despite being enlarged, was still too small. As layers of bodies mounted, some ancient tombstones were raised to the new surface, so many visible today actually commemorate people buried several levels down. The cemetery surface now lies well above surrounding streets and the soil and graves are held in place by retaining walls. The Old Jewish Cemetery is among the world’s oldest surviving Jewish burial grounds. Its foundation date is not known, but it replaced a so-called “Jewish Garden” closed in 1478. The earliest gravestone is that of rabbi and liturgical poet Avigdor Kara (died 1439). The oldest gravestones are plain apart from Hebrew inscriptions, but later examples feature architectural details such as pilasters and false portals. From the 16th century the dead were characterised by symbols relating to their name, character or profession, such as pairs of blessing hands, wine grapes or animals such as lions, bears, deer and wolves. A harp or violin indicated a musician, a lancet a physician and a pair of scissors a tailor. Important Jewish figures buried here include scholar, teacher and writer Rabbi Judah Loew ben Bezulel (died 1609), Mordecai Maisel (1601), developer of the Prague Jewish Town and David Gans (1613), Renaissance scholar, historian, mathematician and astronomer. Rabbi Judah Loew’s grave draws pilgrims from all over the world, as he is accredited with creating the legendary Golem, a giant clay figure able to defend the Jewish ghetto from antisemitic attacks once it was endowed with life. D0212.A2527
