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Origin and history

The Israelite cemetery of Herrlisheim-near Colmar, located at the foot of Elsburg, was built in 1794 or 1804 according to the sources. It replaces a former burial site in Jungholtz, used by the local Jewish community before that date. The site, surrounded by a fence wall, has about 700 to 800 graves, the oldest of which date back to the early 19th century. The most modest steles, dated from the first decades, evolve towards more elaborate models, inspired by Christian tombs at the end of the century. A flood in 1984 caused by a pipeline rupture destroyed the oldest graves (1774–1804).

The Jewish community of Herrlisheim, which was present in the 13th century, experienced violent persecution in the Middle Ages, notably in 1340 and 1375, accused of poisoning rivers. After a temporary disappearance, it reappeared in the seventeenth century, with 102 individuals in 1731, then 272 in 1865, before declining after the German annexation of Alsace in 1871. The local synagogue, destroyed in 1940 by a shell, marks the end of this presence. The cemetery, which was desecrated in 1992 and 2004, was listed as a historic monument that year.

In 2017, an American volunteer, Roger Harmon, made a complete photographic inventory of graves, preserving the memory of the site. This cemetery illustrates the turbulent history of the Jews in Alsace, between integration, persecution and progressive disappearance. The steles, raised after the desecrations, today bear witness to this cultural and religious heritage.

The site is managed by a cultural association and remains accessible, although partially protected (excluding the southwest). Its fence wall and location away from the village underline its sacred and marginal character in the local landscape.

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