Jewish cemetery in Heřmanův Městec

The Jewish cemetery in Heřmanův Městec is one of the largest and best-preserved Jewish burial grounds in the Czech Republic, situated roughly 400 metres northeast of the town square, along Havlíčkova street.

How old is the cemetery?

Local tradition places the founding of the cemetery before 1430, though some researchers date its origins to the 15th or even the 16th century — a period from which Jewish settlement in the town is documented with certainty. Around the mid-15th century the local Jewish community briefly disappeared, likely due to wars, epidemics and possibly pogroms, before re-establishing itself by the century's end. The oldest gravestone that remains legible today dates from 1647, and the statutes of the local burial society (Chevra Kadisha) survive from 1643.

How did the cemetery grow over time?

The grounds were enlarged on several occasions. The first documented expansion took place in 1667, followed by further extensions, with the last recorded one in 1838. After that final enlargement the cemetery reached its present size of nearly 4,000 square metres. Within this area, arranged across 21 rows, stand more than a thousand gravestones — 1,077 according to detailed surveys. In terms of both size and the number of surviving stones, it ranks among the largest and oldest Jewish cemeteries in Bohemia. The last burial here took place in 1940.

What can visitors see on the gravestones?

Older matzevot were carved from sandstone, while later ones are made of marble. They bear traditional Jewish funerary symbols — blessing hands marking the graves of Kohanim, jugs identifying Levites, floral ornamentation, and, more unusually for a rural cemetery, animal motifs often tied to the names of the deceased. The site also preserves the former ceremonial hall (beit tahara), which still carries an inscription from 1838 recording the completion of the "House of Eternity."

What happened to the local Jewish community?

On 3 December 1942, nearly all of the roughly 60 Jews still living in Heřmanův Městec were ordered to report to a nearby assembly point in Pardubice, from where they were deported two days later to the Terezín concentration camp. Most did not survive the war, and the once-established Jewish community of the town effectively ceased to exist.

What is the cemetery's condition today?

In the early 1990s the cemetery underwent extensive restoration: overgrown vegetation was cleared, the gravestones were reset and catalogued, the surrounding wall was repaired, and both the Chevra Kadisha building and the caretaker's house were renovated. In 1991 the synagogue and the Jewish cemetery of Heřmanův Městec were both declared national cultural monuments.

Frequently asked questions

Where exactly is the cemetery located? About 400 metres northeast of the main square in Heřmanův Městec, along Havlíčkova street.

How many gravestones survive today? More than a thousand matzevot, arranged in 21 rows across an area of nearly 4,000 square metres.

Is the cemetery legally protected? Yes, it has been listed as a national cultural monument since 1991, alongside the town's synagogue.

When was the last burial held here? In 1940, shortly before the deportation of the local Jewish community.