Judenäule, Jewish burial site and Rhine river island in Waldshut-Tiengen, Germany
The Judenäule is a Rhine island between Germany and Switzerland that rises from the water and is now protected as a nature reserve. The island extends roughly 240 meters in length and 80 meters in width, lying opposite the Swiss isle of Grien.
Between 1689 and 1750, the island served as a burial ground for Jewish communities forbidden from conducting burials in Switzerland. In the 1950s, archaeologists uncovered more than 70 graves, which were later transferred to a cemetery in Endingen.
The island's name comes from its past as a burial ground for Jewish communities, and this history remains visible in the place itself. Few visitors who come here sense the quiet significance of this location, where graves without headstones once lay before being moved elsewhere.
An observation platform can be reached from the western entrance of Gewerbepark Hochrhein, where stairs lead down toward the water. The island itself is not accessible for walking, but the platform offers a good view of the site.
The island was restored around 2003-2004 through a careful project that refilled a former Rhine channel with water. This work transformed it into a protected biotope and showed how seriously the site's conservation was taken.
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