Zakhor-Memorial Echternach
Where? rue de la Montage, L-6460 Echternach
A lonely suitcase commemorates the persecution of Jews in Echternach during the Second World War
The Auschwitz Committee suggested that the town of Echternach erect a Zakhor memorial to commemorate the fate of the Jewish community of the abbey town during the Shoah. The memorial is located below St. Peter and Paul's Church.
The commemorative plaque above the forgotten suitcase bears the inscription ‘Zakhor’ (Hebrew for ‘Remember!’).
During the deportations, Jews were only allowed to take a small amount of hand luggage with them. Their possessions were confiscated by the state, so their entire lives ended up in a suitcase.
In 2019, artist Gunter Demnig laid 20 stumbling stones in Echternach bearing the names of the deported Jewish citizens of Echternach. Seven more were added in 2021.
It is the third Zakhor monument in Luxembourg; two more can be seen in Medernach and Remich.