The picturesque 400-year-old Jewish cemetery in Møllegade 12, 2200 at Nørrebro is worth a visit, when you are in Copenhagen.The cemetery was established in 1694 and is the oldest Jewish cemetery in Denmark. The cemetery is no longer in use, but the graves are still being maintained and well kept. Jewish graves are never demolished as a part of the belief that the dead should forever rest in peace.
After years of renovation, the Jewish Community in Copenhagen decided to open the old cemetery for the public, the 1th of June 2011.
Opening Hours
Tuesday and Thursday: 3 pm. -7 pm
Sunday: 12 noon – 18 pm
Male visitors are required to wear a hat or a kippah when visiting the cemeteries.
It is possible to borrow a kippah if needed. The cemetery is open between April 1 and October 1, and the entrance is free.
A guided tour takes approximately 1½ hours, and can be arranged between the 1th of April and the 31th of October. A tour costs 1.500 DKK and each tour are limited to maximum 20 people.
For further information about the Jewish Cemetery in Møllegade, Copenhagen or for ordering a guided tour, please contact The Danish Jewish Museum by e-mail info@jewmus.dk or by phone (+45) 33 11 22 18. It is also possible to get more information about the cemetery by contacting the Jewish Community by phone: (+45) 33 12 88 68.
A bit of history
Today it is possible to see the graves of several famous Danish people such as; Chief Rabbi Abraham Alexander Wollf, who lead the Danish Jewish Community for 62 years, from 1829; Politician and managing director David Baruch Adler, who was also the grandfather of the Danish physicist, Niels Bohr; The Bing brothers, Jacob Herman Bing (1811-1896) and Meyer Herman Bing (1807-1883). The Jewish brothers founded the porcelain factory ’Bing & Grøndahl’ together with Frederik Vilhelm Grøndahl. The factory is today a part of ‘Royal Copenhagen A/S’.
Tradition
When visiting a Jewish cemetery one put a small stone on the grave and not a flower. This is bound to the understanding that in death everybody is equal and some graves therefore shouldn´t be more flowerish than other in Jewish perception of human life
