In the pavilion of the National Historical and Memorial Reserve “Babyn Yar” the demonstration of the exhibition of Jewish matzevah ornaments from one of the oldest cemeteries in Eastern Europe –Sataniv (Khmelnytskyi region, Ukraine) continued. Organized jointly by Museum “Jewish Memory and Holocaust in Ukraine” and the United Jewish Community of Ukraine, the exhibition presents 25 unique images of matzevah, cleaned of the inevitable traces of time – weathering, moss stains, lichen. Before leaving for the capital, the exhibition was on display in our Museum for two months.

On March 25, a group of soldiers of the “Azov” regiment and their relatives visited the exhibition. And on March 27, children - participants of the “Iron Change” project of the Ukrainian Railways – came to the reserve. Teenagers saved from occupation and deportation – they travel through the cities of Ukraine, immerse themselves in national history. Holding their breath, the children listened to a story about the events that took place in the Babyn Yar tract during World War II. The interest of teenagers was also aroused by the story of Dr. Olena Ishchenko, a research associate of Museum “Jewish Memory and Holocaust in Ukraine”, about the peculiarities of the Jewish burial rites and semantics of typical images on stone tombstones - matzevah. The exhibition of ornaments, prepared by historian Dmytro Polyukhovych, surprised high school students with its originality. They asked about the meaning of each zoomorphic image  lion, hare, fox, bear, unicorn, deer, snake. Thus, encountering the culture of the Jewish people who lived on Ukrainian lands for centuries, children learn to perceive it as part of their own history and culture, to sympathize with the State of Israel, which, like Ukraine, is currently going through the most difficult trials.

The exhibition will be available for visiting until April 21. The exhibition center “Living Memory” in Babyn Yar by the address: Yuryia Illenka Street, 46A is open from Monday to Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., and on Saturday and Sunday from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.