The German Foundation for Monument Protection (GFMP) has granted €85,000 for the restoration of gravestones in the Old Jewish Cemetery of Mainz, one of the oldest in Europe.
The Old Jewish Cemetery, which has gravestones dating from the 11th century to the late 19th century, has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site as part of the SchUM Sites of medieval Jewish heritage in Speyer, Worms, and Mainz since 2021.
(Stones are still being recovered — in 2021, 18 medieval Jewish gravestones were discovered during construction work in the old town of Mainz. They were built into a wall along the Rhine river following 15th century pogroms that saw the expulsion of Jews from the city and destruction of the Jewish cemetery.)
Conservation work at the cemetery has been going on for years.
An 11-year conservation and restoration project for the inscriptions and stabilization of gravestones, financed by Mainz in cooperation with the GFMP, is under way, and a new visitors’ center under construction is expected to open later this year.
“The sum of €85,000 euros covers one-third of the project costs for the year 2026,” the Mainz city web site said.
The inscriptions on the fragile red sandstone, which are often heavily weathered, are particularly at risk. Their preservation is of central importance, as they document the centuries-old history of the Jewish community in Mainz.
“The gravestones are not only culturally and historically valuable, but above all bearers of individual memories and religious traditions,” Ludwig Holle, Mainz Head of the Department for Building, Monument Preservation and Historical Heritage, said. “Their restoration is a demanding task that we are pursuing with great care. This funding enables us to continue this work at a high professional standard.”
The Old Jewish Cemetery in Mainz dates from the early 11th century, one of the oldest in Europe. It includes around 1,700 gravestones, most from the 17th-19th centuries. Its earliest gravestones were lost, destroyed or scattered over the centuries.
In 1926 180 medieval tombstones and fragments from the destroyed Mainz cemetery that had been rediscovered in the course of construction work over the years, were re-erected in a Memorial or Monument Cemetery. They date from the 11th to the early 15th century — the oldest stone, dating from 1049 — that of Jehuda ben Schneor — is currently in the Mainz State Museum.