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Viski

A Shtetl in Lavia

The Jewish Cemetery of Vishki

photo courtesy of Christine Usdin

The Jewish Cemetery of Vishki is, well..., indescribable. I can only say that I can't imagine how anyone could stand in that cemetery and not feel a sense of deep spirituality.

It is situated about a 1/3 of a mile from the village, on the edge of the lake. It is quite large, and is surrounded by tall walls. There is an old iron gate, which is in disrepair. We are told that lions once adorned the top of the gate, but they have long since been taken. Of course it's a miracle that the cemetery survived at all, when the Jewish homes and the synagogue of Vishki were burned by the nazis. During Soviet times, it was quite common for the stones to be taken and used to make roads. It's certain that some of the stones were taken from the cemetery in such a manner. In the summer of 2008, Klaus Peter Rex, a German priest, led an international group of youths to perform a one week restoration project of the cemetery. Klaus found some stones tied up, leaning against a wall, ready to be shipped out.

Klaus made a map of the cemetery, from which I made an online "interactive" map. In these tables, the N° column refers to the numbers which Klaus assigned to the graves. Credit for most of the translations goes to Avraham Malthete. I am greatly indebted to him for his time and knowledge, which he has generously shared with us.