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Introduction

Recording the epitaph on a headstone in the new Jewish cemetery in Rohatyn (Ivano-Frankivsk oblast). Photo © RJH.
This page lists print and electronic references which provide guidance and data to enable several types of surveys at Jewish burial sites in western Ukraine, to support the development of detailed plans for clearing, landscaping, fencing, and the conservation or creation of markers, memorials, and other objects at cemeteries and mass graves. Documented surveys are often the first practical step of cemetery preservation projects, and sometimes also the last.
The references here address surveys to: identify Jewish cemeteries at sites where current land use masks their historical purpose; assess and record the condition of and risks to a whole cemetery and/or individual graves and markers; measure cemetery terrain (perimeter and interior topography); identify, classify, transcribe/translate, and database headstone symbolic carvings and inscriptions; locate and identify subsurface features (individual and mass burials, fallen and covered headstones, etc.); and capture, process, and model 3D surface profiles of individual headstones. Advice is provided not only for what to do and how to do it, but also for what not to do. In addition to print and digital texts and videos, a number of cemetery and grave assessment forms from experienced researchers and practitioners are linked here as examples. These references are relevant to the guide section on site surveys and research on this website.
Because these lists are lengthy, we have divided them into categories for simpler review; many of the references overlap two or more categories. A few of the listed references are highlighted with brief summaries in the first section below, “key references”. Other useful resources on this subject may be found in the sections on regional and international experts, and on technical tools, methods, and data. Except where noted otherwise, all references listed here are in English.
Key References
Survey Methodology for the Preservation of Historic Burial Grounds and Cemeteries; Frank G. Matero and Judy Peters; APT Bulletin, Vol. 34, No. 2/3, 2003, pp. 37-45. Free download available.
A brief but thorough overview of the key reasons for surveying and assessing the condition of historic burial sites, and recommended methods to conduct and record the assessment. The text also provides a decision tree for choosing approaches to emergency intervention in the preservation of grave markers, and an information management model for digital data. Methods for creating a digital site map are outlined, as are approaches to data analysis and interpretation. Examples of these methods in use are available in the University of Pennsylvania Scholarly Commons.
Recording, Documentation, and Information Management for the Conservation of Heritage Places: Vol. 1, Guiding Principles; Robin Letellier, Werner Schmid, and François LeBlanc; Getty Conservation Institute; 2007. Free e-book available.
Highly detailed and richly illustrated, this comprehensive survey of recording and documentation of heritage places (broadly defined as immovable cultural heritage including landscapes such as cemeteries) is intended for conservators and managers of heritage sites. Volume 1 (linked above) provides principles, methods, sample policies, reference data, and an extensive bibliography; Volume 2 provides text and graphical examples with numerous illustrations to explain how conservators addressed the unique recording and documentation needs at each site.
Deciphering Jewish Gravestones; Philip Trauring; B&F: Jewish Genealogy and More; web page, 2020. Also available as a pdf.
A lengthy and very detailed description of common formats, styles, and contents of the epitaphs on Jewish gravestones, with very helpful introductory sections on the shape of Hebrew letters and their variations in carved stone, easily confused letters, and the interpretation of Hebrew acronyms and abbreviations. Generously illustrated and with numerous examples from actual stones to aid transcribers in correctly “deciphering” and interpreting epitaphs, the article is a helpful sequel to an earlier illustrated article on the visual meaning of Jewish gravestone symbols, on the same website.
Printed and Electronic Books
General Survey, Assessment, Mapping, Recording, and Data Management
- Recording, Documentation, and Information Management for the Conservation of Heritage Places: Vol. 1, Guiding Principles; Robin Letellier, Werner Schmid, and François LeBlanc; Getty Conservation Institute; 2007. Free e-book available.
- Recording, Documentation, and Information Management for the Conservation of Heritage Places: Vol. 2, Illustrated Examples; Rand Eppich and Amel Chabbi, eds.; Getty Conservation Institute; 2007. Free e-book available (downloadable in sections).
- Responsible Recording of Historic Sites and Buildings Based on Skills, Training and Sound Judgment (MS thesis); Matthew Robert Morgan; University of Pennsylvania Scholarly Commons, 2014.
- Mining the Qualitative from the Quantitative: Re-Evaluating Cemetery Survey for the Field of Historic Preservation (MS thesis); Kathryn Chambon Diserens; University of Pennsylvania Scholarly Commons, 2013.
- Cultural Landscapes Inventory Professional Procedures Guide; Robert R. Page; NPS Olmsted Center for Landscape Preservation, 2009.
Geophysical Land Surveying
- Holocaust Archaeologies: Approaches and Future Directions; Caroline Sturdy Colls; Springer, 2015.
Photography and Computational Photographic Techniques
- Surveying and Modelling Jewish Heritage Sites: An ESJF Guide; Tetyana Kondratenko and Denys Gorkovchuk; ESJF European Jewish Cemeteries Initiative, 2020.
Journal Articles, Reports, and Web Pages
General Survey, Assessment, Mapping, Recording, and Data Management
- Survey Methodology for the Preservation of Historic Burial Grounds and Cemeteries; Frank G. Matero and Judy Peters; APT Bulletin, Vol. 34, No. 2/3, 2003, pp. 37-45. Free download available.
- Understanding the Archaeology of Landscapes; Elaine Jamieson; Historic England, 2017.
- Applied Digital Documentation in the Historic Environment: Short Guide 13; Adam Frost; Historic Scotland, 2018. Includes downloadable digital documentation companions for Android and iOS.
- Preserving Heritage with Low Cost Documentation: Final Report; Scott Lee et al.; CyArk for NCPTT, 2016.
- Documenting the state of preservation of tombstones on New Haven Grove Street Cemetery as student service project; Stefan Simon and Kiraz Göze Akoǧlu; International Workshop Report on the scope of the material and techniques: Stone, Wood and Earth; Icomos Korea, 2017; pp. 11-33.
- Cemetery Forms; Chicora Foundation; web page, undated.
- Digital Lab Notebook; Cultural Heritage Imaging; web page, undated.
- Cemetery Conditions Assessment Form, with Conditions Survey Definitions; NCPTT, 2012.
- Survey: Risk Assessment (Gravestones); Jonathan Appell; GravestonePreservation.info, 2010.
- Guidelines for Evaluating and Registering Cemeteries and Burial Places (National Register Bulletin 41); Elizabeth Walton Potter and Beth M. Boland; US National Park Service, 1992.
- Recording cemetery data; F. Joanne Baker, Daniel Farber, and Anne G. Giesecke; Association for Gravestone Studies, Markers Vol. 1, 1980; pp. 99-118.
- Graphic Documentation (Landscape Lines #5); NPS Olmsted Center for Landscape Preservation, undated.
- Gesher Galicia Map Room; Jay Osborn et al.; Gesher Galicia, web site, 2012-present.
Geophysical Land Surveying
- Graphical and Plane Table Survey of Archaeological Earthworks; Trevor Pearson; Historic England, 2018.
- Traversing the Past: The total station theodolite in archaeological landscape survey; Jon Bedford et al.; Historic England, 2016.
- Geophysical Survey Techniques (Landscape Lines #6); NPS Olmsted Center for Landscape Preservation, undated.
- Guidelines for the Use of Geophysics in Archaeology; Armin Schmidt et al.; European Archaeological Council (EAC), 2015.
- Learning from the Present to Understand the Past: Forensic and Archaeological Approaches to Sites of the Holocaust; Caroline Sturdy Colls; in Killing Sites – Research and Remembrance; International Remembrance Alliance, ed.; IHRA/Metropol, 2015; pp.61-78.
- Optimizing search strategies in mass grave location through the combination of digital technologies; Dante Abate et al.; Forensic Science International: Synergy; Vol.1, 2019, pp.95-107.
- Investigating Holocaust-Era Crimes; Caroline Sturdy Colls; The European Archaeologist, 2016, pp.68-72.
- Holocaust Victims, Jewish Law, and the Ethics of Archaeological Investigations; Caroline Sturdy Colls; Accessing Campscapes (IC_ACCESS: Inclusive Strategies for European Conflicted Pasts; E-Journal #3, 2018, pp.32-41.
- Unearthed: The Darkest Truths; Elizabeth Svoboda; Sapiens Anthropology Magazine; webpage, 2016.
- Advances in the Use of Technology within European Jewish Cemeteries; Caroline Sturdy Colls; Lietuvos žydų bendruomenė Bagel Shop, Vol.2, 2016, pp.13-14 (via Staffordshire Online Repository).
- Surveys (Landscape Lines #9); NPS Olmsted Center for Landscape Preservation, undated.
- Geographic Information Systems (Landscape Lines #10); NPS Olmsted Center for Landscape Preservation, undated.
- Global Positioning Systems (Landscape Lines #11); NPS Olmsted Center for Landscape Preservation, undated.
- Where on Earth Are We?: The Role of Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) in Archaeological Field Survey; Trevor Pearson et al.; Historic England, 2015.
- Terrestrial Remote Sensing; Historic England; webpage, undated.
Photography and Computational Photographic Techniques
- Photography of Gravestones for a Historic Survey: A How-To Guide; Robyn Lacy; Spade & the Grave; website, 2020.
- 3D virtual reconstruction of an urban historical space: a consideration on the method; Galizia Mariateresa and Cettina Santagati; International Archives of Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial and Information Sciences, 2011. Free download available.
- Applying scientific rigor to photogrammetric 3D documentation for cultural heritage and natural science materials; Cultural Heritage Imaging / NCPTT; final report, 2018.
- Reflectance Transformation Imaging (RTI); Cultural Heritage Imaging; web page, undated.
- Multi-light Imaging: Highlight-Reflectance Transformation Imaging (H-RTI) for Cultural Heritage; Sarah M. Duffy et al.; Historic England, 2018.
- Photogrammetry; Cultural Heritage Imaging; web page, undated.
- Photogrammetry; Recording Cultural Genocide and Killing Sites in Jewish Cemeteries; Centre of Archaeology, Staffordshire University; web page undated.
- Photogrammetric Applications for Cultural Heritage; Jon Bedford; Historic England, 2017.
- Structure-from-Motion recording of artefacts from Helmsley Archaeological Store, held by English Heritage Trust; Li Sou; Historic England, 2016.
- Using Photogrammetry to Document, Analyze,and Reverse-Engineer Grave Markers; Robert Z. Selden Jr.; Stephen F. Austin State University SFA ScholarWorks, 2015.
- A Trial of Different Geospatial Techniques to Improve the Legibility of the Engraving on the Stone from Fishpool Valley; Elizabeth Stephens; Historic England, 2019.
Laser Imaging of Objects and Landscapes
- Airborne Remote Sensing; Historic England; webpage, undated.
- Aerial Investigation & Mapping Standards Technical Review; Sally Evans; Historic England, 2019.
- 3D Laser Scanning for Heritage; Clive Boardman and Paul Bryan; Historic England, 2018.
- Surface prospection of burial grounds and new research tools (on the example of the study of changes in cemetery boundaries); Anna Majewska; Journal of Geography, Politics and Society 7/1, 2017; pp.60-69.
- Geospatial Survey of Standing Medieval Cross; Li Sou; Historic England, 2016.
- A Geospatial Survey of Historic Carvings and Graffiti; Li Sou; Historic England, 2016.
- Using Airborne Lidar in Archaeological Survey; Simon Crutchley and Peter Crow; Historic England, 2018.
Documenting and Interpreting Jewish Grave Markers
- Deciphering Jewish Gravestones; Philip Trauring; B&F: Jewish Genealogy and More; web page, 2020. Also available as a pdf.
- Jewish Gravestone Symbols; Philip Trauring; B&F: Jewish Genealogy and More; web page, 2011.
- Мистецтво останніх слів; Тетяна Федорів і Анна Золотнюк; Збруч (zbruc.eu), січень 2021 р.
- Folk Beliefs, Mystics, and Superstitions in Ashkenazi and Karaite Tombstone Inscription from Ukraine; Michael Nosonovsky; Association for Gravestone Studies, Markers Vol. 26, 2006; pp. 120-147.
- Old Jewish Cemeteries in Ukraine: History, Monuments, Epitaphs; Michael Nosonovsky; The Euro-Asian Jewish Yearbook – 5768, Pallada, 2009; pp. 237-261.
- The Tombstone Engraver; Heidi M. Szpek; Old Cemeteries in Poland with Jewish Tombstones, on The Jewish Magazine; website, 2011.
- До методики наукового опрацювання єврейських кладовищ: європейський досвід; Христина Степанівна Бойко; Вісник Харківської державної академії дизайну і мистецтв, Х., 2008; С. 154-158. (In Ukrainian: Towards a Method for the Scientific Study of Jewish Cemeteries: A European Experience)
- Художні особливості меморіальної пластики єврейських кладовищ східної Галичини XVIII – ХIХ ст.; Наталія Левкович; Вісник Львівської національної академії мистецтв, Вип. 24, 2013; С. 232-245. Доступне безкоштовне завантаження.
- Художні особливості та типологія предметних мотивів і об’єктів на мацевах Східної Галичини XVI – першої третини XX ст.; Христина Степанівна Бойко; Вісник Львівської національної академії мистецтв, Вип. 39, 2019; С. 148-160.
- Дизайн фасаду мацев; Христина Степанівна Бойко; Вісник Національного університету “Львівська політехніка”; Архітектура: Вид-во Львів, 2012; С. 203-211. Доступне безкоштовне завантаження.
- Традиції та побут євреЇв України; А. Кержнер; Нариси з історії та культури євреїв України; Видавництво «Дух і Літера», 2009; C. 275-299.
- Єврейське мистецтво: традиція і Новий час; Є. Котляр і В. Сусак; Нариси з історії та культури євреїв України; Видавництво «Дух і Літера», 2009; C. 300-329.
Other References
- Inscriptions, Outcrops and XRF: Analysis of the Ferryland Gravestones; Robyn S. Lacy et al.; North Atlantic Archaeology via Spade and the Grave, Vol.5, 2017.
- Locating Unmarked Graves; Texas Historical Commission; web page, undated.
- Shaving Cream: Genealogist’s Friend or Cemetery Conservator’s Foe?; Jason Church; NCPTT, web page, 2009.
Videos
General Survey, Assessment, Mapping, Recording, and Data Management
- The Basics for Cemetery Documentation; NCPTT; YouTube, 2013.
- Not Seeing the Cemetery for the Monuments: Understanding the Importance of Preservation Assessments; NCPTT; YouTube, 2014.
- Best Practices for Digital Documentation; Ekaterini Vlahos and Mike Nulty; NCPTT, YouTube, 2012.
- Monument Conservation at National Cemeteries: Planning, Management, and Treatment Implementation; NCPTT; YouTube, 2014.
- Documenting National and World Heritage Sites: the Need to Integrate Digital Documentation and 3D Scanning with Traditional Hand Measuring Techniques; Krupali Krusche and Christopher Sweet; NCPTT, YouTube, 2012.
- Performance-based Evaluation of Materials & Methods for Monument Conservation; Norman R. Weiss and Irving Salvid; NCPTT, YouTube, 2009.
Geophysical Land Surveying
- Survey & Inspection: Geospatial Survey; Paul Bryan and Jon Bedford; Historic England, 2020.
Photography and Computational Photographic Techniques
- Photography as Preservation; Rhys Martin; NCPTT, YouTube, 2019.
- Advances in Computational Photograph Techniques for Cultural Materials; NCPTT; YouTube, 2012.
- Photogrammetric Documentation of Weathered and Damaged Headstones at the Cataraqui Cemetery; NCPTT; YouTube, 2014.
- Using Photogrammetry to Document, Analyze, and Reverse-Engineer Grave Markers; Robert Z. Selden Jr.; Center for Regional Heritage Research: Archaeology Paper 232; 2015.
- Practical, Scientific Use of Photogrammetry (series); Cultural Heritage Imaging; Vimeo, 2015-2017.
- 3D Modeling of a Gravestone; Dante Abate; NCPTT, YouTube, 2012.
- High Resolution Digital Photogrammetry with Object Surface Texture; Battle Brown; NCPTT, YouTube, 2012.
- Close Range Photogrammetry vs. 3D Scanning for Archaeological Documentation; Katie Simon; NCPTT, YouTube, 2012.
Laser Imaging of Objects and Landscapes
- Restoring the Lion’s Roar: Documenting and Replicating Limestone Structures Through Laser Scanning, 3D Computer Modeling, and CNC Machining; Caitlin Smith; NCPTT, YouTube, 2012.
- A Comparative Study Using LiDAR Digital Scanning and Photogrammetry; Mike Nulty; NCPTT, YouTube, 2012.
- Assessing the Value of Laser Scan Data; Dana Lockett and Paul Davidson; NCPTT, YouTube, 2012.
Documenting and Interpreting Jewish Grave Markers
- Reading Stones Basics (part of a series); Cemetery Conservators for United Standards; web page, undated.
Other References
- Finding Avondale: Remote Sensing for an Unmarked Cemetery in Difficult Subsurface Conditions; NCPTT; YouTube, 2014.
- Fragile Grounds: Mapping South Louisiana’s Cemeteries; NCPTT; YouTube, 2014.