New Jewish cemetery

The first Jewish settlement in Vaals took place with the exodus of the Jews from Prussia (Germany) (late 18th century) in response to the Napoleonic era. Scarce sources mention the admission of Jews in Vaals, which was tolerant at the time. Jewish cemeteries are laid out for eternity, until the resurrection of the dead in a messianic time, as the Jewish prophets predicted.

Instead of flowers, small pebbles can be seen on Jewish graves or tombstones worldwide. In Judaism, cemeteries have the same sacred status as synagogues. On Shabbat and Jewish holidays it is forbidden to enter the cemetery.

Men and boys must always wear a head covering during a visit or work at the cemetery. The new Jewish cemetery was built in the early 19th century. The Jewish community of Vaals flourished in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Most of the graves date from that time. Jews from Germany and Belgium were also buried there because of the State guarantee, since 1814, concerning the eternal burial rest, which was not guaranteed in neighboring countries.

The cemetery was in use until just before the deportation and murder of the Jews, during the occupation of the Netherlands, by National Socialist Germany (1940-1945). This cemetery contains one of the oldest gravestones in Limburg. An unknown woman died in 1756.

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