A Tombstone in Memory of a Dispersed Family

In the old part of the Jewish cemetery in Konstanz, there is a tomb which differs from all the traditional tombs in the area. Enclosed by high shrubbery, there is a large boulder  with several engraved names. Two names commemorate the men who were buried here: Max Picard in 1914 and his father Salomon Picard in 1925. Later in the eighties of the past century, other names of family members were added: Eugenie, Hugo, his wife Helen, and Ernst. They all had to flee from Nazi terror and were buried far away from home in Jerusalem, London, and Zurich. Facing the boulder there is a stone bench inviting visitors to  rest. In the middle of the backrest of the bench  a bronze plaque shows the portrait of Max Picard.

The tomb stone symbolizes an attempt to remind passersby of the Picard family, a wealthy family of some importance in this town from the turn of the century until the end of World War I. The tomb is  the only trace left of the Picards in Konstanz.