On the Peripheries of Memory: Tracing the History of the Old Jewish Cemetery in Wrocław’s Urban Imaginary
Author(s)
Publication Name
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Abstract
The Old Jewish Cemetery in Wrocław offers a unique
perspective on the changing tectonics of memory construction in a
Central European city. In this article, we trace the little known
history of the cemetery and the ways in which its position in the
urban imaginary changed in the context of large‐scale geopolitical
transformations. Through the cemetery’s history, we can follow the
fate of one of the most prominent Jewish communities in pre‐World
War II Germany, starting with its emergence following the
emancipation of German Jews in the last quarter of the nineteenth
century to its demise under Nazi rule. After the city’s transfer to
Poland following the Potsdam Conference (1945), the cemetery
became an increasingly isolated relic of the Jewish past of the city
until its grassroots‐led revitalization commencing during the 1980s
Solidarity era. After this important period of civic‐led renaissance
tied to the city’s Jewish heritage, today, the cemetery has been
pushed again to the periphery, an outcome of a process we refer to
as the policy of memory containment.
perspective on the changing tectonics of memory construction in a
Central European city. In this article, we trace the little known
history of the cemetery and the ways in which its position in the
urban imaginary changed in the context of large‐scale geopolitical
transformations. Through the cemetery’s history, we can follow the
fate of one of the most prominent Jewish communities in pre‐World
War II Germany, starting with its emergence following the
emancipation of German Jews in the last quarter of the nineteenth
century to its demise under Nazi rule. After the city’s transfer to
Poland following the Potsdam Conference (1945), the cemetery
became an increasingly isolated relic of the Jewish past of the city
until its grassroots‐led revitalization commencing during the 1980s
Solidarity era. After this important period of civic‐led renaissance
tied to the city’s Jewish heritage, today, the cemetery has been
pushed again to the periphery, an outcome of a process we refer to
as the policy of memory containment.
Topics
Cemeteries Holocaust Holocaust Commemoration Main Topic: Holocaust and Memorial Memory Post-1989 Jewish History Jewish Heritage
Genre
Geographic Coverage
Original Language
Volume/Issue
5(2)
ISBN/ISSN
9783838213569
Bibliographic Information
On the Peripheries of Memory: Tracing the History of the Old Jewish Cemetery in Wrocław’s Urban Imaginary. 2019: https://archive.jpr.org.uk/object-3108
