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Among the speakers were H.E. Hubert Knirsch, Ambassador of Germany to the Republic of Moldova; H.E. Yoram Elron, Ambassador of the State of Israel to the Republic of Moldova; Victor Gonta, Mayor of Mărculești; and Alexandra Fishel, Educational Projects Officer at ESJF. The ceremony concluded with a memorial prayer led by Chief Rabbi Mendel Axelrod. […]

The first day of the two-day international educational seminar dedicated to the preservation, protection, and promotion of Jewish heritage as an integral part of the cultural heritage of the Republic of Moldova has successfully concluded. The seminar was opened by Magdalena Poirier, Head of the Culture Section and First Secretary for Embassy of the Federal […]

ESJF Kyiv Office Director Alexander Bessarab recently met with Aliona Grossu, Director of the Comunitatea Evreiască din Republica Moldova. Recently, ESJF signed a cooperation agreement with the Jewish community of the country to implement a fencing project at the new Jewish cemetery in Telenești. This year, Telenești will become the third Jewish cemetery in Moldova […]

We invite representatives of local public authorities, cultural institutions, tourist information centres and museums, as well as guides, researchers, and community leaders to take part in a two-day international educational seminar dedicated to the preservation, protection, and promotion of Jewish heritage as an integral part of the cultural heritage of the Republic of Moldova. When: […]

Markulești (also known as Starovka, after the name of the landlord, or Kot-Markulești, from the Hebrew phrase ki tov — “this is good,” according to local legend) was founded in 1837 (according to another version, in 1839) as one of the first Jewish agricultural colonies in the Bessarabia region, established on leased land. According to […]

Jews were among the founders of Bălți, settling there as early as 1779. Over time, the city became an important center of secular Yiddish culture. In 1930, Bălți was home to 14,259 Jews, who made up around 60% of the city’s population. Two Jewish cemeteries are known to have existed in Bălți. The old Jewish […]

Among the speakers at the opening were Andrei Chistol, State Secretary of the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Moldova Ministerul Culturii al Republicii Moldova; Alexandr Petkov, Mayor of the Municipality of Bălți Primăria municipiului Bălți; Robert Althaus, Cultural Affairs Officer at the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany in Moldova; Alexandra Fishel, […]

Rașcov is one of the earliest and most fascinating Jewish communities in Bessarabia, located on the eastern bank of the Dniester River. The town was an important center of early Hasidic tradition. At one time, Yaakov Yosef of Polonne, a prominent disciple of the Baal Shem Tov and author of the first published Hasidic treatise […]

This burial site was protected by the ESJF with the financial support of the Auswärtiges Amt (German Federal Foreign Office) and in cooperation with the Jewish Community of Moldova and the Municipality of Ceadîr-Lunga. The official rededication ceremony was attended by Magdalena Poirier, Head of the Culture and Media Department of the Embassy of the […]

Rashkov is one of the oldest centers of Jewish life in the region. The old Rashkov Jewish cemetery once served a large Jewish community, and around 1,000 tombstones have been preserved there. Moreover, it is a major site of pilgrimage, as it contains the grave of Rabbi Shabtai of Rashkov (1655–1745), an early disciple of […]

Over the past two days, it has been a great pleasure to host our second European Commission Masterclass and the first of the series to take place in person for local engaged leaders in Chișinău, Moldova. After an opening statement from Ion Duminica, Director of the Center for Ethnology of the Institute of Cultural Heritage, […]

The ESJF European Jewish Cemeteries Initiative is looking forward to hosting its second EU master class tomorrow on the topic of Jewish cemeteries in Moldovan Cultural Heritage, which will take place in Chișinău, Moldova over two days. This event is organised in cooperation with the Center for Ethnology of the Institute of Cultural Heritage, which […]