Drama Old Jewish Cemetery

Cemetery Information

Country
Greece
Region
Eastern Macedonia and Thrace
District
Drama
Settlement
Drama
Site address
The entrance to the cemetery is located opposite the house 13-1, Dimitras Street.
GPS coordinates
41.14642, 24.15123
Perimeter length
121 metres
Is the cemetery demolished
no
Type and height of existing fence
The cemetery is fenced with a concrete fence of 2.5 metres height.
Preservation condition
Fenced and protected Jewish cemetery
General site condition
The territory is littered. The trees and bushes have recently been cut but dry tree branches have not been removed from the territory.
Number of existing gravestones
70
Date of oldest tombstone
1885/5645
Date of newest tombstone
1935/5695
Urgency of erecting a fence
Fence is not needed
Land ownership
Property of local community
Preserved construction on site
Drone surveys
Yes

Historical overview

Benjamin of Tudela noted the presence of 140 Jews in Drama in the 12th century. In the 17th century, a small community existed and by the end of the 19th century, it numbered 150 Jews. The Jewish population in 1912 was 600. Although a Jewish school already existed, a new school replaced it in 1925. By then a number of welfare and Zionist organizations operated. When the Bulgarians arrived in spring 1941, the Jewish population stood at 1,200. On 4th March 1943, all the Jews were arrested and transferred to a transit camp in Bulgaria. Afterwards they passed into German hands and were loaded onto ships. From Vienna, the Jews were transferred to the Treblinka death camp. Of 780 Jews, only a few survived the Holocaust.

The exact period of the cemetery’s establishment is unknown, but it can be assumed that it was founded in the 12th century.

3D model