Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Loading...
Top Destinations
Latest Places
Most Popular Places Random Place Lists Itineraries
Add a Place
Download the App
Top Destinations
View All Destinations »

Countries

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • China
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Italy
  • Japan

Cities

  • Amsterdam
  • Barcelona
  • Beijing
  • Berlin
  • Boston
  • Budapest
  • Chicago
  • London
  • Los Angeles
  • Mexico City
  • Montreal
  • Moscow
  • New Orleans
  • New York City
  • Paris
  • Philadelphia
  • Rome
  • San Francisco
  • Seattle
  • Stockholm
  • Tokyo
  • Toronto
  • Vienna
  • Washington, D.C.
Latest Places
View All Places »
Contemplative paths.
Ayo Rock Formations
Parking Lot Shoeprints
Dewey Square Pylon & Bent 38
Black Rocks of Pungo Andongo
Latest Places to Eat & Drink
View All Places to Eat »
The pavlova comes crowned with jewel-like fruit.
Central Park Boathouse
The Village Tavern of Long Grove - exterior.
The Village Tavern
Hunter House Hamburgers
L’Escamoteur
Names on the bartop.
The Dive
Loading...

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All Poland Warsaw Okopowa Street Jewish Cemetery

Okopowa Street Jewish Cemetery

The final resting place of more than 200,000 people, this is one of the largest cemeteries in Europe.

Warsaw, Poland

Added By
ahvenas
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
CAPTION
  ahvenas / Atlas Obscura User
  ahvenas / Atlas Obscura User
  ahvenas / Atlas Obscura User
  ahvenas / Atlas Obscura User
  ahvenas / Atlas Obscura User
  ahvenas / Atlas Obscura User
  ahvenas / Atlas Obscura User
  ahvenas / Atlas Obscura User
  ahvenas / Atlas Obscura User
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

Jewish people have lived in Mazovia, a region in east-central Poland, since medieval times. In the 18th century, the Jewish community in the province grew in size, and made up a significant portion of the city of Warsaw’s population. In 1806, a cemetery was established outside the city’s okopy, or trenches. As the city grew, the cemetery came to be inside the city limits and Okopowa Street now marks the original course of the trenches.

The cemetery covers 33.4 hectares, and an estimated 200,000 people have been buried on its grounds. People buried at the cemetery include spiritual and political leaders, artists, businesspeople, and thousands of nameless victims of the Warsaw ghetto.

In 1914, Warsaw’s Jewish population numbered more than 330,000. In 1946, after World War II ended, it numbered about 18,000. This cemetery is one of the few remaining pieces of material heritage of the Jewish people in Poland. Much like the Old Jewish Cemetery in Prague, one can find heaps and rows of headstones crowded together. Parts of the Okopowa Street Jewish Cemetery look abandoned, with thicket covering the land and vines growing up to the trees. The cemetery also includes a number of decorated tombs and mausoleums. You can still see many historical slabs and tombstones with ornaments and symbolic reliefs.

Until World War II, the cemetery included a funeral house and synagogue. The area was recognized as a historical monument in 1973 and was put under protection. Today, in addition to being in active use for burials, the cemetery is an important source of heritage for the local Jewish community. Many Jewish birth, marriage, and death certificates were destroyed during World War II, and information from the gravestones is often used in genealogical research.

Related Tags

Cemeteries Jewish World War Ii Graveyards Gravestones Religion Sacred Spaces Graves Military

Know Before You Go

The cemetery is open to visitors Monday to Thursday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Fridays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., and Sundays from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. It is closed on holidays. For visitors there is a fee of 10 PLN.

Community Contributors

Added By

ahvenas

Published

December 31, 2019

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • https://jri-poland.org/warsaw-cemetery.htm
  • http://warszawa.jewish.org.pl/en/about-us/timeline/
  • https://www.britannica.com/place/Mazovia
Okopowa Street Jewish Cemetery
Okopowa 49/51
Warsaw, 01-043
Poland
52.246287, 20.975467
Visit Website
Get Directions

Nearby Places

The Monument Tree of Pawiak

Warsaw, Poland

miles away

Keret House

Warsaw, Poland

miles away

'A Footbridge of Memory'

Warsaw, Poland

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Warsaw

Warsaw

Poland

Places 41
Stories 2

Nearby Places

The Monument Tree of Pawiak

Warsaw, Poland

miles away

Keret House

Warsaw, Poland

miles away

'A Footbridge of Memory'

Warsaw, Poland

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Warsaw

Warsaw

Poland

Places 41
Stories 2

Related Places

  • The Polish graves.

    Mbala, Zambia

    Mbala Pioneer Cemetery

    A small cemetery on a hill overlooking Mbala contains the history of the town's colonial past.

  • Flowers growing on a mass grave.

    Saint Petersburg, Russia

    Piskaryovskoye Memorial Cemetery

    This memorial complex contains several mass graves for victims of the Siege of Leningrad.

  • Robert Johnson’s headstone at Little Zion Church.

    Greenwood, Mississippi

    Robert Johnson's Grave

    After decades of research and rumors, Little Zion Church was proven to be his final resting place.

  • Bristol, England

    Hermit's Cave and Quaker Burial Ground

    A medieval cave used to shelter local hermits now holds nearly 200 old Quaker gravestones.

  • Gravesite in the cemetery.

    Grayling, Michigan

    Camp Grayling Military Cemetery

    At the top of a local ski mountain is a hidden cemetery containing the graves of just two soldiers.

  • Interior of Mohawk Chapel.

    Brantford, Ontario

    Mohawk Chapel

    The 18th-century church's stained-glass windows tell the story of the Haudenosaunee people.

  • The outside of the synagogue in Piazza Giuseppe Mazzini.

    Modena, Italy

    Modena Synagogue

    This beautiful 150-year-old synagogue survived Italy's fascist period and the Second World War.

  • The tombstone found at St. Paul’s Cathedral, carved in the classic Ringerike style.

    London, England

    Viking Tombstone

    This Viking gravestone carved in a rare runic style was dug up from a London churchyard.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.