Belaus -- Pictures of Luban Synagogue Being Demolished

Sam Gruber has posted a series of pictures, forwarded by Dovid Katz in Vilnius, showing the actual demolition of the synagogue in Luban, Belarus (which I wrote about in earlier posts). Here is one of them:



Writes Sam:

Can this be a wake-up call for better policies in Belarus and elsewhere? This was not a derelict building. It was not a ruined. It was not a forgotten site. It was sacrificed to the demands of contemporary development pressures where expediency and short term gain (to the public tax rolls or to a local politician's campaign war chest or private account) mean more than protecting history and architecture. No community in the world is immune to these pressures. Nor should every old building be saved. But there needs to be in place - in every community - procedures that allow time for review and reflection, and time for world to get out that a building is imperiled.

Belarus -- More on Luban Synagogue Destruction

On his Jewish arts and monuments blog, Sam Gruber has posted more detailed information about the demolition of the historic former synagogue in Luban, Belarus -- as well as pictures of what he rightly describes as an "impressive vernacular building." The wooden synagogue, built in the 19th century, is being demolished to make way for some sort of commercial development.

Former Luban synagogue, c. 2005 -- photo courtesy of the Jewish Heritage Research Group in Belarus

Sam writes that according to Yuri Dorn of the Jewish Heritage Research Group in Belarus:

the Luban authorities did not inform Belarus Jewish community about planned demolition. He did not speculate why, but presumably they were either ignorant of the need to do so, or of any likely interest in the fate of the building, or they suspected that if word got out that their would be complaint. Based on my long experience in historic preservation I would assume the worst, and that is the reason for the rush to demolish, so that any protest will be too late. In 2004, the Jewish Community of Belarus tried unsuccessfully to include the Luban Synagogue building on the official registry of landmarks, but was unable to do so because of insufficient archival documentation about the building's history. Presumably it was deemed eligible on architectural grounds alone.

Sam also includes a picture of the English/Russian/Hebrew commemorative plaque on the building.

Belarus -- Synagogue destroyed in Luban

The Associated Press reports that a historic synagogue in the Belarus town of Luban, south of Minsk, is being destroyed to make way for a supermarket. Built in the 19th century, the synagogue is that where the influential orthodox rabbi Moshe Feinstein served before fleeing to New York in 1936. A handful of Jews live in the town today. Officials say the building is not protected as a monument.

By YURAS KARMANAU, Associated Press Writer
Fri Apr 24, 4:27 pm ET

LUBAN, Belarus – The roof has been removed and the windows stripped of their frames and glass. Piece by piece, workers are tearing down the former synagogue [. . .]

The synagogue's role in town history was only publicly recognized again in 1996, when a memorial plaque in English, Belarusian and Hebrew was put up on the building, which by then housed a medical clinic. [. . . ]

As the demolition began, the memorial plaque was moved to a nearby building, where it was attached with two crooked, rusty nails. [. . .]

No mention is made of Jews even at the Soviet-era memorial where 785 Jews were shot in November 1941 when the Luban Ghetto was liquidated. The victims are referred to only as "peaceful citizens."

Read full story

Belarus -- Jewish Tombstones Discovered in Brest

A Belarus newspaper reports that a trove of Jewish tombstones -- apparently used by the Nazis to pave a parade ground -- has been unearthed in central Brest during excavations for an outpatient clinic. During World War II a Gestapo headquarters stood at the spot.

The first tombstone was discovered as soon as workers removed the asphalt layer on April 8 and a total of 12 tombstones were found as of Friday.

The tombstones, which are some 50 centimeters wide and about 150 centimeters tall, appear to have been removed from the graves of rabbis by Nazi troops. [...]

All tombstones are to be taken to the Brest Fortress war memorial, where some 2,000 such pieces are already kept. They are expected to be used in the creation of a memorial at the site where a Jewish cemetery once was and where the Lakamatyw stadium was built later.

Read Full Article

Belarus -- Kobrin Synagogue in Danger

Sam Gruber has begun posting material from the Bratislava Jewish heritage seminar, and probably will provide more detail -- or at least different detail -- than I am posting... after all, he was one of the organizers of the meeting.

At the seminar, he was able to speak at length with Bella Velikovskaja, of the Jewish Heritage Research Group in Belarus (and the Union of Jewish Religious Communities) about the serious threats to the former synagogue in Kobrin, a monumental structure built in 1868 which was restituted back to the Jewish commuity in 2004. The building was used for grain storage and a beverage-production plant after World War II. The government threatens to take back the building unless restoration work begins -- and funds are short.

Sam writes:

The situation at Kobrin is now urgent, because the government which returned the large 19th-century masonry synagogue to the Jewish community in 2004 threatens to take it back unless restoration work begins. This is a situation that is also becoming common in Poland. After holding Jewish properties for a half century or more and letting them deteriorate into near-ruins, they are returned to communities - but without any financial assistance to restore them. Communities must not only quickly find a use for the building, but also the funds to make them work. Sometimes years pass and nothing happens. Sometimes governments demand quick action. I frequently say the situation is similar to being asked to make soup. One is given the carrots and potatoes, but not pot to cook them in, and sometimes not even a fire. Consequently communities are overburdened. In Belarus, there is a real plan for Kobrin. But there is not enough money. And the government threatens to take the building back if nothing happens soon.

Read full post

Jewish Heritage -- New Resources

Old Jewish Cemetery, Roudnice nad Labem, CZ. Photo (c) Ruth Ellen Gruber

The Bratislava Seminar provided the opportunity for representatives of various countries to present new printed or web resources on Jewish heritage, and in particular new maps, brochures and other material related to Jewish tourism and itineraries.

I try to keep track of these, but I generally can't keep up with the amount of material being published.

I have listed some of the web resources that were highlighted at the conference in the links list and travel resources list on this blog.

Other material presented includes:

-- Jewish Sights in the Usti Region (Czech Republic)

A very elaborate package of high-quality illustrated brochure, CD and DVD detailing Jewish sights in northern Czech Republic, including Decin, Libochovice, Louny, Most, Roudnice nad Labem, Teplice, Terezin, Ustek, and Zatec. In all these places, Jewish heritage sites have been restored or are undergoing restoration as part of local heritage. The material was written by my old friend Jaroslav Klenovsky, one of the pioneers of Jewish heritage research in CZ, and produced with funding from the EU and Usti regional authorities.

Jaroslav was one of several Czech representatives at the Bratislava meeting. The Czech Jewish community, through its Matana property management organization, has been a leader in developing -- and implementing -- a viable longterm strategy in Jewish heritage site preservation and management. This has included forging partnerships with local civic and private bodies as well a foreign donors, and working out a strategy of restoration of Jewish sites for cultural use including Jewish museums. In addition, numerous publications have been issued. (By the way, I linked in a recent post to a downloadable new brochure guide on Czech Jewish heritage put out by the Czech Tourism Office. Since then, the link seems to have been removed, though the brochure still exists in print... the Czech Tourism web site now had a page with links to several Jewish sites around the county -- click HERE.)

-- "Permanent Yiddishkeit" -- Jewish Heritage Map of Belarus

-- Jewish Latvia -- Travel Guide

-- Slovak Jewish Heritage Route -- new brochures

Belarus -- Brest Jewish Museum?

The web site of the Federation of the Jewish Communities of the CIS reports thata campaign is under way to establish a Jewish section in the municipal museum in Brest, Belarus.

BREST, Belarus – In the Belarus city of Brest, the Jewish community association “Brisk” has begun undertaking a campaign for establishing a Jewish section in the municipal museum. The first initiatives to be taken are the collection of materials and items to display once this section has been created.

Towards this end, Boris Bruk, the Chairman of the Jewish community of Brest, is leading the establishment of a special council to close manage the collection and accumulation of materials on the life and development of the local Jewish community, including its foundation and distant past.

According to Boris Bruk, the collection for the future museum exhibition is already starting to come together. These materials include pieces from the traveling exhibition “The Jews of Brest”, which was previously organized by Arkady Blyaher, the local representative of the ‘Holocaust’ Center.

The Jewish community of Brest appeals to the public for assistance from anyone who may have access to or provide assistance with regards to collecting materials for the museum, and expresses its gratitude in advance to anyone able to aid in this matter. Boris Bruk is reachable via mobile telephone at +375 (29) 635-51-53 or via e-mail at hesed@brest.by

The Jewish community of Brest is a full and active member of the Association of Jewish Communities of Belarus and, as such, of the Federation of Jewish Communities of the CIS and Baltic Countries.