Pesach is the holiday of liberation, spring and renewal. It is celebrated on the occasion
of the event which was the Rubicon in the history of Jewish people – exodus from Egypt slavery.
At that time the spirit of freedom overcame all fears before hardships on the way to the Promised Land.
May the memory about your freedom-loving ancestors fill you with patience,
fortitude and power to defeat al difficult life situations!
Our sincere congratulations on the holiday! May you be in a festive mood!
We wish you family warmth, a tasty and kosher seder!
Best wishes,
The team of the Museum of the History and Culture of Bukovinian Jews.
News of the museum's life
News archive
April 2012
A new educational project in the museum
In April, 2012 the Chernivtsi Museum of the History and Culture
of Bukovinian Jews in a partnership with the Department of Education of the Chernivtsi City Council on the funds
of a municipal grant has launched a new project – “Overcoming stereotypes together”.
The project aims to promote the strengthening of the atmosphere
of mutual understanding, respect and tolerance and at the same time to prevent possible outbreaks of xenophobia
and interethnic hostility. Participants of the project (senior students of Chernivtsi high schools) will conduct
certain research work during April – August 2012. In particular, they will learn about the influence of different
ethnic groups for the development of the city in the past and they will get to know how the organized national
lives of representatives of different ethnic communities in Chernivtsi look like today.
The outcomes of the project will be represented in an exhibition
that will be shown both in schools and galleries of the city. The display of Chernivtsi students will be enlarged
by the exhibition “Together”, prepared by the Congress of National Communities of Ukraine (Kyiv) about lives of
representatives of small national groups and ethnic communities in Ukraine.
We will inform visitors of our website about the course of the project and its outcomes.
March 2012
Honorable Guests in the Museum.
On Saturday, the 24th of March the Museum of the History and Culture of Bukovinian Jews was honored to
have special guests – Dr Hans-Juergen Heimsoeth, the Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of
the Federative Republic of Germany to Ukraine, and his wife. Undertaking an official visit to Chernivtsi,
the Ambassador and his wife took a tour around the museum, showing true interest in its permanent exhibition,
and met the museum’s team.
Dear visitors of our website! Dear friends and colleagues!
We sincerely congratulate you on the bright, boisterous, joyous holiday – Purim!
Through ages we keep the memory about the events, described in the Megillat Esther,
as evidence that faithfulness and devotionto your nation can overcome deceitfulness, hatred and intrigues.
May this wonderful holiday fill you with optimism and belief that the darkest clouds of sorrow and unhappiness
might be blown away by the warm spring wind!
Best wishes,
The team of the Museum of the History and Culture of Bukovinian Jews.
July 2011
Soldiers of the Ukrainian Army
help volunteers of the German organization “Action Reconciliation Service for Peace” to
clean the Jewish cemetery in Chernivtsi.
On the 7th of July soldiers of the Ukrainian army who are stationed in Chernivtsi came to help
the participants of the international volunteer summer camp. They together cleaned a part of the
old Jewish cemetery in Zelena Street.
On 3rd of July this year's
summer camp of Action Reconciliation Service for Peace will start in Chernivtsi.
As in the previous two years, this summer there will again be a summer camp of the German
volunteering organisation Action Reconsilitation Service for Peace on the old Jewish cemetery
in Zelena Street. The Museum for the History and Culture of Bukovinian Jews supports the summer
camp as a local partner.
From 23-30 June 2011 the second
international youth summer school on Judaism will be held in Chernivtsi.
It will be organised by the youth organisation "Youth association for religious studies"
and its president Larissa Vladichenko. Co-organisers are the Chernivtsi Museum for History
and Culture of Bukovinian Jews and the Chernivtsi Yuriy Fedkovytch University.
The exhibition "Motherland Word",
dedicated to the 110th birthday of Rose Auslander.
The Museum of the History and Culture of Bukovinian Jews invites you to the exhibition "Motherland Word",
dedicated to the 110th birthday of the world-renowned poet Rose Auslander, who was born in Chernivtsi.
The opening of the exhibition will take place on the 19th of May 2011 at 3 pm in the entrance hall of
the cinema "Chernivtsi" (former Jewish Temple).
Congratulations on Passover!
Dear guests of our website!
It seems that not so long ago we together joyously celebrated the happy ending of the Megillat Esther
story and the old Jewish tradition tells us about the coming of the next important holiday - Pesach.
To celebrate this Holiday means not just to remember the Exodus of the Jews from Egypt, but also to
think again about the meaning of inner and outer freedom as an essential part of human life.
That is why at the eve of this Holiday we wish you and your family strength and patience, and fortitude
to be free even in the face of difficult circumstances in life.
We wish you a festive mood, warmth in your family and a delicious Seder!
March 2011
German TV star is interested in the Jewish past
of Chernivtsi
On Thursday, the 31st of March, the well-known German actress Iris Berben visited the Museum of the
History and Culture of Bukovinian Jews. Iris Berben is one of the famous German actresses. She starred
in about 80 roles in different films. The actress won numerous international and German awards.
The important meeting in Lviv
On the 23rd of March, representatives of the Chernivtsi Museum of the History and Culture
of Bukovinian Jews met a delegation of the Rothschild Foundation in Lviv. The meeting took place
on the initiative of the Foundation in the process of evaluation of the project for the support
of the museum's collection and the creation of our own Internet resource, which was realized in
2010. For this project the Rothschild Foundation awarded our museum with a grant.
"Stairs of Tolerance" for Chernivtsi comprehensive
schools.
Recently the Museum of the History and Culture of Bukovinian Jews received good news from the Chernivtsi
City Council: the commission of the contest of social projects, which is held in Chernivtsi every year,
supported our museum's project "Stairs of Tolerance". Hence, in the autumn of 2011 regular workshop
classes for senior pupils of Chernivtsi comprehensive schools will be held in our museum. These
lessons aim at overcoming of the stereotypes and biases which exist among the young generation
in their relation to other cultures and faiths.
Trainings will be held by specialists based on methodology worked out with help of the Congress
of National Communities of Ukraine.
The International conference
"Public reform of museum management and marketing".
From the 14th to the 17th of March 2011, Mykola Kushnir, the director of the Museum of
the History and Culture of Bukovinian Jews, took part in the international conference
"Public reform of museum management and marketing". This forum was organised
in Kyiv by the International Renaissance Foundation, the Rinat Akhmetov Fund "Development
of Ukraine" and the Ukrainian Centre for Museum Development.
Congratulations on Purim! Dear guests of our website!
The month Adar brings to you a joyous and noisy holiday Purim. This is a time when joy replaces sorrow
and grey days become filled with colourful events.
We wish your hearts to be filled with a festive spirit and that you may be warmed by the first sun rays
of spring! We hope that the story of Esther and Mordehai reassures you that in spite of the most difficult
situations in your life, you may always be a winner.
We wish you a lot of sincere smiles and a joyous celebration!
Purim Sameach!
Film's director Boris Dratva visited the Museum
On the 9th of March Borys Dratva, a former Chernivtsi resident and now a citizen of Israel,
director of numerous documentary films about Chernivtsi and the life of Bukovinian Jews visited
the Museum of the History and Culture of Bukovinian Jews.
Best wishes! Leonid Fuks, the Director of the Chernivtsi region Jewish Charity Foundation "Hesed Shushana",
who has been devoted to the Jewish life in the city and region for many years, our museum's generous
sponsor and friend, a sympathetic and respected person, will celebrate his birthday on the 6th
of February.
The team of the Museum of the History and Culture
of the Bukovinian Jews sincerely congratulates Mr. Fuks on this occasion and wishes him good health,
inspiration in the fulfillment of all his plans and intentions, well-being and success in his numerous
activities that benefit the community.
January 2011
International Holocaust Remembrance Day
On the 27th of January the International Holocaust Remembrance Day is observed in the entire world.
The Holocaust was one of the worst crimes of World War II and one of the worst tragedies in the history
of humanity and it should never happen again.
Bukovina suffered heavily from the savage cruelty of the Holocaust. The victims of the inhuman
policies which were carried out here mainly by the army and local administration of the Kingdom
of Romania from July 1941 to March 1944 were nearly 100,000 local Jews.
Italian newspaper on the conference of the AEJM in Rome
In the Italian newspaper "La Nostra Gazzetta" ("Our Newspaper"),)
which is published in Russian, there was an article on the conference of the Association of European
Jewish Museums, which recently took place in Rome. The Museum of the History and Culture of Bukovinian
Jews was represented by Joseph Zissels, the initiator of the museum's creation, and Natalia Shevchenko,
the first director of the museum and now the curator of its collection.
Congratulations on Hanukkah!
Dear guests of our website! Our best wishes at Hanukkah!
Remembering with you the great event in the history of the Jewish people - of the victory of the good
over the evil, of hope over despair, of light over darkness - we wish you to feel G-d's support
everywhere you go and that you are sure of success in everything you start.
We wish you happiness, health, spiritual well-being, warmth and light in your home.
Our best congratulations to Joseph Zissels!
The Museum of the History and Culture of Bukovinian Jews sincerely congratulates its founder, the Head
of Association of the Jewish Organisations and Communities (VAAD) of Ukraine, the Chairman of the General
Council of the Euro-Asian Jewish Congress, human rights activist and famous social figure, the extremely
decent and sincere person Joseph Zissels on his birthday!
We wish Mr. Zissels good health, inspiration and the fulfillment of all his plans, as well as happiness, joy,
well-being and harmony and warmth in his family.
November 2010
Conference in Rome
On 20 - 23 November 2010 the conference of the Association of European Jewish Museums (AEJM) took place
in Rome. For the first time representatives of the Museum of the History and Culture of Bukovinian Jews
took part in the conference: Joseph Zissels, the initiator of the museum's creation, and Natalia Shevchenko,
the first director of the museum and now the curator of its collection.
This is an annual conference which has the aim to promote the cooperation between Jewish museums of Europe,
to exchange thoughts and experiences in the field of museology as for today the museums in more than 30
countries of Europe are associate members of the AEJM.
More detailed information on the conference will be posted soon.
Our best congratulations!
The team of the Museum of the History and Culture of Bukovinian Jews sincerely congratulates Petro Ryhlo,
the famous translator, literature expert, expert on Jewish culture and heritage of Bukovina, good friend
of our museum for receiving the D.Zahul Award for literature. We wish him new achievements, inspiration
and success in all his endeavors.
Anniversaries in the new museum season
A new year and a new museum season has started for
the Museum of the History and Culture of the Bukovinian Jews. We are going to realize a lot of new
interesting ideas and projects to enrich our museum's exhibition and to satisfy the lively interest
that we receive from our visitors.
The Museum of the History and Culture of the Bukovinian
Jews will be happy to cooperate with all who are interested in the celebration of these and other
memorable dates. We will inform you about planned events on our website.
Audio-guide in six languages
Since the 1st of November 2010, the Chernivtsi Museum
of the History and Culture of Bukovinian Jews offers its visitor audio-tours in six langages (Ukrainian,
Russian, English, German, Romanian and Hebrew).
This new service became possible thanks to financial
support of the Rothschild Foundation. As a result our museum became a pioneer in this field not only
in Chernivtsi and Chernivtsi oblast, but also one of the first in whole Ukraine. The use of modern
technologies aims at the creation of additional conveniences for visitors. Alongside with audio-guides
the museum offers different films and presentations on the full screen LCD monitor which was also
acquired thanks to an international grant.
Interactive Map
The museum's exhibition will be enlarged soon by a unique
development: an interactive map of the Jewish communities of Bukovina which includes the Northern and
Southern part of the area.
The basis of this project is the map of proportions of different ethnicities in the Bukovinan population,
made by local researchers at the beginning of the 20th century.
Nowadays, thanks to modern computer technology, visitors of the museum will be able to learn in detail
about the life of large and small Jewish communities of the area, with the characteristic Jewish buildings
including synagogues and public and private houses.
For the demonstration of the project in the museum a special screen was installed.