Restoration of Tombstones in Neuburg’s Old Cemetery: Progress and Plans

Promotion Society met

At the general meeting, Corinna Zimber, chairwoman of the “Society of Friends and Sponsors of the Old Cemetery in Freiburg im Breisgau”, announced that all 84 particularly endangered monuments have been restored, with the exception of five gravestones. Thanks to the grants from the State Monuments Office, the city of Freiburg and the company itself, the financial means for this could be raised. The city of Freiburg had five sculptures that had been damaged by vandalism repaired as a priority. A recent shaking test revealed ten tombstones with insufficient stability. The foundations of these tombs would have to be fixed. At the end of 2022, a new application for restoration was submitted to the State Monuments Office (LAD) for the years 2023/24. A total of 81 tombs in the “yellow” category (67 stone and 14 iron tombs) are to be restored and processed by the end of 2024. The Society of Friends and Sponsors contributes 75,000 euros. The application is expected to be approved in June, so that the call for tenders can be issued in September and work is expected to start in November. For the temporary storage of the tombstones intended for restoration, a lapidarium is to be erected at the carport on the north corner. The building application for this has already been submitted, the building permit is still pending. The aim is to start construction by the end of 2023. Other measures, such as repairing the wells and replacing the heating in the Michaelskapelle, were also called for at the meeting. During the Open Monument Day on Sunday, September 10, there are guided tours at 10 a.m., 11 a.m. and 12 p.m. The “Day of the Old Cemetery” takes place on Sunday, November 5th, from 2 p.m. After the formal part, Gerhard Krieger held a photo lecture on the subject “And they only sleep – children’s graves in the old cemetery”. The speaker was able to present a variety of graves for children from infancy to adulthood who died of various diseases. Some of the mothers who died in childbirth were also buried in the same grave.