Cemetery

The cemetery is located in the south of the city, above the Schustergasse, accessible via a forest path branching off from the street Vogelberg 
. The Jewish community of the town was able to establish a cemetery as late as the 17th century (around 1660), for which they had to pay (1728) an annual tax of 12 groschen. The cemetery area covers 18.00 ar. and is terraced. The wealthier Jews of the town were obviously buried on the lower four terraces. There are about 220 graves. The southern part of the cemetery adjoining the Bleichenröder forest merges into forest.

The cemetery is located east of the old country road in the direction of Behrungen in the immediate vicinity of the border with Bavaria (1949 to 1990 located on the border fence of the former GDR). The dead of Berkach's Jewish community were buried in Kleinbardorf from the time of the first settlement of Jewish persons in the village around 1700 until after 1820. After 1820, the Berkach community was able to buy a plot of land above the "Rothrasen" and establish its own cemetery there.

The Jewish cemetery could be established by the Jewish community Barchfeld already in 1686. At that time, the landgravine Hedwig Sophie von Hessen gave her patron Jews a piece of land for a burial ground at the "Fischertor" located near the village. In 1714 the cemetery was extended for the first time. The Jews had to pay an annual fee of 2 talers as a hereditary lease. In addition, the burial fee for adults was 1 thaler 12 groschen, for children half the price. In 1741 the cemetery was fenced in. A second time the cemetery was enlarged in 1786 by a "sixteenth acre", a third time in 1803.

Also a Jüdischer cemetery was present, which lay on the „Jüdenhügel". The way to the Jüdischen cemetery led according to the Überlieferung through the „Klagetor" named accordingly.

The cemetery is located in the Napptal, north of the town; it can be reached via the B 85 in the direction of Kelbra, Kyffhäuserdenkmal. About 1 km outside the town branches off an access road with the inscription "Gasthaus Sennhütte". Directly opposite the inn is the Jewish cemetery. 

A brick wall forms the demarcation between the main cemetery and the Jewish cemetery. Already the medieval Jewish community had a cemetery, which is mentioned between 1428 and 1521. It was located in the direction of Holzhausen on Ichtershäuser Straße. Traces of this cemetery have not been preserved. Until 1921 the dead of the Jewish community were buried in Plaue or in other places (especially in home towns of the deceased). The land for the establishment of a Jewish cemetery in Arnstadt was acquired by the Jewish community in 1912.

The Arnstadt community had a synagogue (mentioned in 1347 in a partition agreement between Count Günter XXI and the sons of his brother Heinrich) and a cemetery on Ichtershäuser Straße (or Erfurter Straße?, but it is unclear at what time it is mentioned in the Middle Ages - the cemetery is mentioned in 1428 and 1521).

The medieval Jewish community had a first cemetery in the 13th century, which was probably located in the area of the still existing "Judengasse". A few remains of this cemetery are still preserved by the fact that several stones were used, for example, in the construction of the Lorenzkirche and were rediscovered (today in the funeral hall of the cemetery on Schnieglinger Straße). This first cemetery was probably destroyed during the terrible persecution in 1298.

Presumably towards the end of the 16th century, the site on the Laudenbacher Schlossberg is purchased by various Jewish communities from the region around Laudenbach and used as a cemetery. On the occasion of a Jewish census  in 1623 a gravedigger is mentioned for the first time, 30 years later a document mentions an own administrator (Gabbai) for the cemetery, the synagogue and the mikvah (1655). The enclosure wall of the cemetery was built in 1873/74. A Bavarian-wide collection is started to finance the construction project. In 1930 the area is extended to its present size.