THE YAD VASHEM MUSEUM (HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL)

Yad Vashem is a national Holocaust memorial complex located in Jerusalem - on the western slope of Mount Herzl (the exact location is known as the Mount of Remembrance).

The memorial complex was founded by the decision of the Israeli government in 1953 - in memory of the Jews who became victims of Nazism in 1933-1945 and the practically destroyed Jewish communities. The area of ​​the complex is about 18 hectares. Visiting Yad Vashem is free for everyone, without an appointment. Every year, over a million people from different countries of the world come to the Jerusalem Memorial; in terms of attendance in the country, it is second only to the Western Wall.

YAD VASHEM DATABASE

The official website of the museum complex contains databases of Holocaust victims and people who helped Jews during the Holocaust. Yad Vashem's death database is available in English only. The base of the righteous is Russified.

THE STRUCTURE OF THE YAD VASHEM MEMORIAL COMPLEX

The Yad Vashem complex houses several museums and memorial sites. Some museums' opening hours may differ from the general schedule.

1. Shoah History Museum (Disasters)

The museum is housed in a new prism-shaped building (which resembles an arrow when viewed from above) with an area of ​​4200 sq. meters. Includes a central gallery with branches, each of which contains permanent exhibitions dedicated to one of the stages in the life of Jews during the Nazi years. At the end of the tour, visitors enter the Hall of Names, followed by the Epilogue Hall, from which you can go to the museum's observation deck. The site offers a view of Jerusalem.

Exhibits of the Yad Vashem Museum:

1)A world that no longer exists.

2)Nazi Germany and the Jews.

3)The occupation of Poland and anti-Jewish policies.

4)The fate of the Jews of Western and Eastern Europe.

5)1941: Operation Barbarossa and the beginning of the final decision.

6)The final solution to the Jewish question and the ghetto uprising.

7)Resistance and salvation.

8)The last Jews.

9)Return to life: 1944-1949.

THE HALL OF NAMES IN YAD VASHEM

The site is a national memorial containing evidence sheets with the names of the victims of the Holocaust. Documents are collected in black folders, which are placed on shelves along the walls of the room. The central part of the hall is made in the form of a cone. Its height reaches 10 meters, and its depth is 7 meters. Fragments of testimonies and photographs of the deceased are printed on the inner surface of the cone. The base of the cone is filled with water, which reflects the photographs.

The Hall of Names also has a screen displaying readout sheets and a computer center with access to the Yad Vashem database. The center's staff will help you find the names of the victims in the database.

HALL EPILOGUE

This is the only hall of the Holocaust History Museum that does not tell about historical events. The main role here is assigned to emotional experiences. Fragments of letters and diaries, memories, and stories of participants in tragic events are projected onto the walls of the hall.

ART MUSEUM OF YAD VASHEM

The collection of the art museum is also dedicated to the persecution of Jews. The halls display over 10,000 exhibits - this is the largest exhibition of works of art related to the Shoah theme. The peculiarity of the exposition is that the works were performed by victims of the Holocaust. There are several thematic exhibitions in the halls, where portraits of victims, camps, and ghettos are displayed.

EXHIBITION PAVILION OF YAD VASHEM

The premises of the pavilion with a total area of ​​700 sq. meters are used for installations, temporary interdisciplinary exhibitions, demonstrations of sculptures, and other major works of art. The main place in the exposition is devoted to documentary photography. The photographs were taken by Jewish photographers who filmed the horrors of the tragedy. In the exhibition halls, visitors can see replicas of works.

Also, at the Yad Vashem museum complex, there is an educational and video center and a synagogue. In the Yad Vashem synagogue, you can see exhibits collected from destroyed synagogues in Europe - cabinets for storing Torah scrolls and other Judaic items.

Opening hours of the Hall of Names: Holocaust History Museum, Art Museum, Exhibition Halls, and Synagogue:

Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday: 09:00 to 16:00;
Friday: 09:00 to 14:00.

YAD VASHEM HALL OF MEMORY

A tent building, on the stone floor of which you can read the names of 22 concentration camps in which Jews were kept and exterminated, as well as places of massacres. The Eternal Flame is lit in the center of the hall, next to it there is a memorial plate. The ashes of people cremated in death camps are stored under it.

YAD VASHEM CHILDREN'S MEMORIAL

Dedicated to the 1.5 million Jewish children killed during the Shoah. It is a cave artificially created in the rock, in which the names and ages of children - victims of the Holocaust are heard.

JANUSH KORCZAK SQUARE

The central object of the square is the monument to Heinrich Goldschmidt, a Jewish teacher, and doctor known as Janusz Korczak. In 1942, he tried to save 200 children from death, who were sent to an extermination camp.

MONUMENT TO JEWISH SOLDIERS AND PARTISANS

The monument is dedicated to the Jews who fought against the Nazi regime in Germany. The author of the sculpture is Bernard Fink.

VALLEY OF DESTROYED COMMUNITIES

Monumental part of the complex on an area of ​​2.5 acres. The monument is dedicated to more than 5,000 Jewish communities affected or destroyed during the Holocaust. The House of Communities is located in the central part of the valley, where exhibitions and short films dedicated to the Holocaust are regularly shown.

Also, the territory of Yad Vashem includes:

1)Partisan panorama

2)Garden of the Righteous of the World

3)Memorial to the Deported

4)Memorial Square of the Warsaw Ghetto

5)Kikar Hatikva (Hope Square)

6)Monument to Heroism

7)Archive and Library Building

8)Family Square (Kikar Amishpaha)

9)International School of Holocaust Studies

10)Swedish ambulance

11)Monument to the inhabitants of the village of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon

12)Memorial to the villagers of Newland

13)Alley of the Righteous

PRIVATE TOURS IN YAD VASHEM

You can visit the Yad Vashem Museum complex as part of a group or individual excursion. I can offer a private tour in Yad Vashem for individuals and groups as well, usually, a full tour takes between 3 or 4 hours.

You can order audio tours in different languages, for this, you need to contact the administration of the museum and specify the date of the visit, the number of visitors, and the language in which the excursion will be held. Reservations are made by phone at 972-2-6443802 or through the official website of the museum. 

INFORMATION FOR VISITORS

1)Complex infrastructure

Yad Vashem has everything a tourist needs - an information center where you can get information about the museum and exhibitions; a kosher cafe and cafeteria; a bookstore selling Holocaust literature; lockers for things and public toilets.

2)How to get to Yad Vashem?

The memorial complex is located 4-5 kilometers along the road west of the center of Jerusalem. It is not difficult to get to it on your own: public transport runs regularly along the route. The geographical landmark and the closest city bus stop to the complex is Mount Herzl (Israel's National Cemetery).

By public transport

Egged high-speed buses run to Yad Vashem. To find out the flight schedule and route, go to the transport company's website (there is a version in English and Russian).

You can also take a free shuttle bus that runs between Mount of Remembrance and the museum complex.

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