Unsettled Heritage: Living next to Poland's Material Jewish Traces after the Holocaust

Yechiel Weizman's book Unsettled Heritage explores how postwar society in small, provincial towns perceived, experienced, and interacted with the physical traces of former Jewish neighbors, uncovering the concrete and symbolic fate of sacral Jewish sites in Poland's provincial towns. It became one of the most urgent municipal concerns of the communist era, and the main vehicle through which Polish society was confronted with the memory of the Jews and their annihilation.

Format: Hardback
Length: 306 pages
Publication date: 15 February 2022
Publisher: Cornell University Press

In his groundbreaking work, "Unsettled Heritage," Yechiel Weizman delves into the fate of thousands of abandoned Jewish cemeteries and places of worship that remained in Poland after the Holocaust. He explores how postwar society in small, provincial towns perceived, experienced, and interacted with the physical traces of former Jewish neighbors.

After the war, with few if any Jews remaining, numerous deserted graveyards and dilapidated synagogues became mute witnesses to the Jewish tragedy, leaving Poles with the complicated task of contending with these ruins and deciding on their future upkeep. Combining archival research into hitherto unexamined sources, anthropological field work, and cultural and linguistic analysis, Weizman uncovers the concrete and symbolic fate of sacral Jewish sites in Poland's provincial towns, from the end of the Second World War until the fall of the communist regime. His book weaves a complex tale whose main protagonists are the municipal officials, local activists, and ordinary Polish citizens who lived alongside the material reminders of their murdered fellow nationals.

"Unsettled Heritage" showcases the extent to which debating the status and future of the material Jewish remains was never a neutral undertaking for Poles—nor was interacting with their disturbing and haunting presence. Indeed, it became one of the most urgent municipal concerns of the communist era, and the main vehicle through which Polish society was confronted with the memory of the Jews and their annihilation.

Through his meticulous research and compelling storytelling, Weizman sheds light on the complex and often fraught relationship between the Polish people and the legacy of the Holocaust. His book provides a valuable contribution to our understanding of this critical period in history and offers a powerful reminder of the importance of confronting our shared past and working towards a more inclusive and tolerant future.

Weight: 28g
Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781501761744