The Jewish cemetery in the village of Valcineț, Ocnița district, known as Beit Olam, is a sanctuary of silence and oblivion. Spread over an area of 3.5 hectares on the outskirts of the village, this resting place houses tombs dating back to the 17th century. Although the last burial took place around 2000.
The first mentions of this Jewish cemetery, according to the archives, were in the 17th century, when the first burial took place. The last person was buried here in the year 2000. Unfortunately, we do not have any financial support. I tried to reach out to the Jewish community so that we could, in some way, however small, have funding to be able to maintain this cemetery.
Alexandru Grosu, mayor of Vălcineț commune
The cemetery in this village is an open-air museum, where visitors who know Hebrew or Yiddish can read from the tombstones the fate and history of those buried here.
We are at the Jewish cemetery in Vălcineț village, Ocnița district, a place which, although it has great historical importance, has been abandoned for many years. Lack of resources and interest makes this cemetery increasingly difficult to maintain. Thus, the entire history of the Jewish community was buried here.
Denis Chirtoca, NordNews journalist
Funeral plaques in the form of obelisks, trees without branches, and others are some of the vestiges that the Filipciucs take care of with dedication in the second generation.
The last Jewish man collected all the books in a sack and buried them in a separate grave. Sarti is buried next to his wife. This man did funeral services for the dead, he owned many books. Nothing remained except their prayer under the glass in Hebrew
Natalia Filipciuc, the caretaker of the cemetery
Most of the graves in the cemetery are inlaid with the Star of David, an ancient six-pointed symbol. Adopted in the 19th century as a national symbol by emancipated Jews, the Star of David equates to the Christian cross and has become a common emblem on synagogues, Jewish institutions, monuments, tombstones, documents, and religious and household objects.
The synagogue serves as the primary place of prayer for the Jewish community and often includes additional spaces for study, socializing, or offices. 5 km from the commune of Vălcineț, in the town of Otaci, there is such a place of worship which today is a ruin.
Until 1940, this building served as a synagogue for the local community of Otaci. Later, it became the House of Culture, a function it fulfilled until the 90s. Today, the edifice is occasionally visited by the descendants of Jews who emigrated, either to Europe and America, or to Israel.
My aunt, great-grandmother and great-grandfather are buried in this cemetery. A lot of abandoned graves because people have left, the time is already not the same as before, very few people can come and visit this cemetery and only two people are left to take care of this place
Larisa Turcman, resident of Vălcineț commune
Representatives of the Jewish community in the Republic of Moldova indicate that approximately 15,000 Jews currently live in the country. Their number decreased significantly over time: in 1897, the Jewish population numbered 228,668 people, falling to 65,672 in 1989.
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