The oldest existing Jewish cemetery in Switzerland is located in the municipality of Endingen. The dead have been resting here since 1750. Unusually, the graves are arranged in a north-south direction and not with their feet facing east as the Jewish cult otherwise prescribes.
background
Most of the old stones are carved in the shape of the ancient stele. Newer stones from the mid-19th century onwards are partly inscribed in German as well as Hebrew and come in classicist and neo-Gothic forms. Almost all of the stones are carved in sandstone. Marble and other types of stone were added later. The graves tell stories from hundreds of years.
In 1646, the Swiss Confederation decided to expel all Jews. However, since the surrounding countries made no attempt to accept the community, the Jews were allowed to stay in the county of Baden. They were not allowed into the city. So they settled near the city in Endingen and Lengnau in the Surb valley. For a long time they buried their dead on an island in the Rhine, but this was constantly flooding and disturbed the peace of the dead. So the community tried to get the area of the cemetery that still exists today.
Numerous celebrities come from the Surbtal: Salomon R. Guggenheim, the founder of the Guggenheim Museum in New York, William Wyler, the director of “Ben Hur” and the composer Ernest Block.
Access
The key to the cemetery can be picked up from the Israeli community. Due to previous vandalism, the cemetery is no longer accessible. However, the peace and the insight into history are more than worth picking up the key from the community. The cemetery is a listed monument.
