Schönhauser Allee Jewish Cemetery, Jewish cemetery in Prenzlauer Berg, Berlin, Germany.

The Schönhauser Allee cemetery is a burial ground of about five hectares with roughly 22,800 individual graves and 750 family plots. A tall rectangular pillar overgrown with dense ivy rises at its centre, and to the right a large pale gravestone leans backward, weathered and edged with ivy. Rows of smaller upright headstones, some with worn inscriptions, recede among low ivy and scattered brown leaves under bare tree trunks.

The Jewish community bought the five-hectare site outside the Schönhauser Tor in October 1824 for 5,800 taler, and the cemetery, laid out by city architect Friedrich Wilhelm Langerhans, was consecrated on 29 June 1827 with the burial of Sara Meyer. It received all Jews who died in Berlin until 1880, when the overcrowded grounds led the community to open the Weissensee cemetery. Burials continued on reserved plots and family graves until the 1970s.

German inscriptions appeared on gravestones here for the first time in the 19th century, at first on the back and later replacing the Hebrew formula on the front. Some stones carry German texts written in Hebrew letters, and the Star of David is often the only sign of the deceased's religion.

The grounds are accessible on foot and offer enough space to walk without feeling rushed. Plan your visit during daylight hours, as this is a cemetery that deserves respectful behavior.

A narrow path about 400 metres long, the Judengang, runs beside the cemetery wall. It is thought to have been built at the request of Friedrich Wilhelm III, who did not want to meet Jewish funeral processions on his way to Schönhausen Palace. Access is limited today, but guided tours enter it.