Last week, beginning Wednesday, a little team, under the leadership of American architect Rachel Frankel, conducted a project at the old Jewish cemetery at Cassipora to clear, map and investigate. Most of us know about Jodensavanne; the ruins of the synagogue and the cemetery and what is left over of what was once a village.

Further down the Suriname River, near Cassipora Creek, disguised by jungle, is another Jewish cemetery, one less well known. Frankel's project fits in with the plans of the Foundation for Jodensavanne, The Foundation for Jodensavanne appointed a new board of directors a few months ago; a group of doers. The Foundation for Jodensavanne is not just in charge of Jodensavanne but of the entire area, including the cemetery at Cassipora now available and open to the public.

Green Wall

Beginning with a boat, the four American women, a local volunteer Adriana van Alen-Koenraadt and student Daniel Metz start the project. Harrold Sijlbing, director of Suriname's Foundation for Nature Conservation (STINASU) and board member of the Foundation for Jodensavanne, came with the group the first day. The trip over water speaks to the imagination. The route was that taken by those buried at the Cassipora cemetery. "It's hard to imagine the colonists landing in this non-penetrable wall of green," said journalist Andree Aelion Brooks. "Did you see that boat," said one of the volunteers, bigger than a shrimp boat but smaller than a bauxite boat, it must have been the size of the boats in which the colonists arrived in Suriname in the seventeenth century.

The year is 1664, with more than ten people, she has been on a boat for several weeks, perhaps months, She was perhaps dressed for a colder climate. Her clothes are uncomfortable in the Suriname climate. The boat offers no refuge nor does the shade the boat provides. People in the first settlement told the men on the boat where to further sail. The Indians directed them to a location where the water was good. But when they arrived, all they saw was the green density of the forest. The woman wondered if this would provide a permanent refuge. She is happy that it is the end of a long trip but can this wilderness be tamed to provide a safe haven for her and her children?

Upon first step on land, most of the settlers hoped this was a good place, the place that became Jodensavanne. In several years the settlement became a significant community. The first Jews came in 1652. In 1685, came the building of the synagogue, Beracha ve Shalom, Blessing and Peace. At that time, already there were 10,000 people in the area: 500 Jews, 9,000 slaves. In 1712, when French admiral Cassard invaded and raided Suriname, he demanded money with the threat to rob and plunder the plantations if his monetary demands were not met. This was a devastating event for Suriname, especially for those at Jodensavanne where there were the biggest and most profitable plantations. Soon Jews moved to Paramaribo. Only a few poor farmers stayed at Jodensavanne and were able to do so only because they could do some business with those who were installed to man the Cordonpad. The synagogue continued to be used occasionally throughout this period and even after the fire of 1832 which made it impossible for anyone to stay on at Jodensavanne. The cemeteries at Jodensavanne, like the synagogue, were used only occassionally.

Eventually the jungle overtook Jodensavanne. In 1907 there was a big clean-up and again a clean-up occurred during World War 11, starting in March of 1942 and continued up through the middle of 1946 when the N.S.B. (Dutch Nazis in Indonesia) were brought to Jodensavanne. The N.S.B. prisoners conducted much investigation and cleaned 436 graves. In 1971, the Foundation for Jodensavanne began and things once again began to happen. The entire area functioned as an open-air museum. During the 1980's (war years for Suriname), Jodensavanne once again became overgrown. The Jewish Community and the Henk Vos Foundation initiated yet another new life for Jodensavanne. On May 5, a new board of directors was installed: Guido Robles, Chair; Henk Essed (Director of the Foundation for Tourism), Secretary; Anne Carin Issa-Emmanuels, Treasurer- and members Harold Sijlbing, James Ramlall (Minister of Education and Culture) and Ruben del Prado.

Chairman Robles, " We are all enthusiastic, hard working people, The time and effort we put into the Foundation for Jodensavanne must be fruitful. The first thing we must do is to clean up the site. The Ministry of Defense sent soldiers who camped at the site and supplied materials for the clean up which lasted for five days. Following, the Indians of Redi Doti took over and finished cleaning."

The Healthy Springs.

The result of the clean up was a big surprise for Rachel Frankel. During her first visit in 1995 and her second visit in 1997, the whole hill was overgrown and covered with jungle growth. After the clean-up, one can again see the Suriname River from the site of the synagogue. According to Robles, this is only the beginning. The ruins of the whole village; the houses, the mortuary, etc. will be uncovered as well as the remains of Cassipora, Post Gelderland, the Cordonpad, the healthy springs, the Creole Cemetery and the old pathes. It must be a safe, comfortable place where one can go. At Awaradam there is some inconvenience and adventure. But at Jodensavanne, it must be safe and comfortable with accommodations, educational features and environmental soundness. Now, the Foundation for Jodensavanne is occupied with the clean-up and restoration of the monuments and infrastructure for tourists, including the construction of a new pier. There will be a manager, maintenance team and guides. We want a central place for a canteen, information and exhibition, We are thinking about the local people having these charges. The people of Redi Doti are pleased with the new development. The two villages in the area, Redi Doti and Pierre Kondre, have twenty four families and that of Cassipora has fifteen families. They are happy to have the prospect of new work opportunities. The women are thinking about making pots and souvenirs. The Indian community was happy to lend their house to Rachel Frankel's group.

The first time Rachel Frankel visited Jodensavanne, she came as a tourist. The second time she did some investigative work on the synagogue remains with help from STINASU and the volunteer organization, Caribbean Volunteer Expeditions (CVE), a non profit group which preserves and protects monuments from loss. This time Rachel Frankel got help again from STINASU and CVE for the work done at Cassipora Cemetery. From Suriname, Daniel Metz joined the group. He is a student in cultural studies in the Netherlands. Metz is in Suriname under the auspices of the Foundation of Building Preservation of Suriname. His student project aims to create an inventory and management plan for Jodensavanne. From the U.S., a specialist in masonry in the field of historic preservation and restoration, came Lauren Stahl. Upon our short investigation at Jodensavanne, Lauren pointed out brick of various colors and was excited to talk about the readiness of information a site affords: the different colors of the brick indicate where in the oven a particular brick was baked. Attention to such details is highly important.

Being Forgotten.

Driving the first afternoon to Cassipora, a big tree blocked the road resembling a common image of the tombs of Cassipora: the hand of God cutting down a tree. At Cassipora, they cleared 214 graves, 33 in the last days, The oldest grave discovered dates to 1667. The relevance of Frankel's project and the information found will become available to the Jews and therefore to all of Suriname. On August 16, Rachel Frankel and Aviva Ben-Ur will present the results of their investigation in a presentation at 6:00 pm in the Mahamad on the site of the synagogue at Keizerstraat 82. The presentation is free to all.

Aviva is an historian whom Rachel Frankel asked to join the team because of her knowledge of Hebrew. Aviva translated the inscriptions from the stones. From the tomb of Issak de Avilar, 'May his soul be bound up in the bundle of life," which means may he have life forever. In Cassipora, they tried to pick up the forefathers from the forgotten past and give them a respectful place in history.