Zmajevac Jewish Cemetery

Jewish settlers first came to Zmajevac in the 18th century and the synagogue and cemetery were at the same time. The oldest tombstone in the cemetery dates to 1886 and the newest to 1941. The Jewish community ceased to exist in 1914 after the beginning of World War I. The synagogue was sold in 1950.

Zmajevac is a settlement in the region of Baranja. A Roman military camp was located on the territory of the village during the period of the Roman Empire. In the 13th and 14th centuries, mainly Hungarians lived there, at which time the village was called “Vörösmart.” In the 16th century, the area was under Ottoman rule until the end of the 17th century. At the beginning of the 18th century, the village was inhabited by Hungarians and Germans. Winemaking, and flour and fruit production flourished in the village and many fairs were held there. In 1881, 2,276 people lived in the village.

One of the most famous residents of the village was a Jewish woman named Otti Berger. She was a famous Croatian Bauhaus designer from Zmajevac (Vörösmart). She was born in 1898 and in 1926 she graduated from the Royal Academy of Arts and Artistic Crafts in Zagreb. In the autumn of 1931, Otti became the incumbent Head of the Bauhaus Weaving workshop. In 1936 she was forbidden from working in Germany because of to her Jewish origins. She was forced to close her company and she came back to Zmajevac in 1938. Sadly, in April 1944, she was deported to Auschwitz along with her family, where she died.