Jewish Cultural Heritage in Maramureș. Historical Monuments as Sites of Memory
Jewish Cultural Heritage in Maramureș. Historical Monuments as Sites of Memory

Summary/Abstract: The term ‚cultural heritage‛ was coined by Henri Jean-Baptiste Grégoire (Abbé Gregoire) during the French Revolution in an attempt to bring an end to the vandalisation of monuments and works of art. In Romania, the legal protection of national heritage sites is ensured by the National Register of Historic Monuments (Lista Monumentelor Istorice), managed by the Ministry of Culture and its subordinate institutions. In the county of Maramureş, this register currently lists three synagogues (in Baia Mare, Sighetu Marmaţiei and Seini), six Jewish cemeteries (despite there being over 100 cemeteries scattered across nearly half the county), as well as a few houses previously owned by prominent members of interwar Jewry. For this study, we will make use of oral history (interviews), archival documents and scientific literature in order to emphasise the sacred and memorial aspect of the material Jewish heritage of Maramureș, composed of genuine ‚sites of memory‛ (‚lieux de mémoire‛ — Pierre Nora). Listed buildings of historical and memorial significance should be protected and valued, and their story told, in order to improve the intrinsic value of real estate, as well as to enhance the public space to which they now belong.

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