Poland: 100 tombstones found in Radom

Some 100 multicolored, well-preserved Jewish tombstones were uncovered in Radom, Poland, during road construction about 100 km south of Warsaw, between Lublin and Lodz. According to the European Jewish Press story, this is the largest discovery of Jewish gravestones in Poland in years.

One explanation is that many gravestones were taken by the Nazis from Jewish cemeteries for paving roads.

Many people in Radom's once large Jewish community fled the city in 1942 and participated in the Warsaw Ghetto uprising and in partisan activities.

The Foundation for the Preservation of Jewish Heritage in Poland is working to preserve the tombstones. They will eventually be placed at the Radom Jewish cemetery. Since the stones are painted and artistically decorated, they are considered a rare Jewish archaeological find.

The Foundation is reporting more and more Jewish finds in Poland.

Foundation official Monika Krawczyk said that more information is received every year on such gravestones finds. In most cases, she said, they manage to save them. The organization feels they are important - for both Polish and Jewish culture and are examples of the high quality of Jewish art. She also said that

Discovered stones may be also important for Jewish genealogists or survivors of Radom.

The city of Radom is organizing events to commemorate the uprising in 1944 and in Warsaw on Friday, sirens sounded Friday as traffic came to a standstill and pedestrians stood for a minute's silence. Polish leaders and veterans laid wreaths in honor of those who revolted against the Nazis.

Read more at the link above.