About Belarus

Articles dedicated to Belarus history, Belarus politics, Belarus economy, Belarus culture and other issues and Belarus tourist destinations.

graves.by - it might change Belarus!

The only evidence of a man’s being on this earth very often is a tombstone. Regrettably, these collapse because of maltreatment or age or simply sink into the ground. Very often in Belarus one can see old headstones being dislocated or even used somewhere in construction.

The tombstones by nature don’t contain too much information but they are the last authentic witnesses of the grand events that took place in the history of Belarus – from the stones on the graves of the Belarusian gentry and literary classics, to the Jewish mazeivas, tombstones and markers of the French, German and Russian soldiers.

By studying and preserving such objects we keep the memory of particular people and events behind which they were and thus we understand better who we are.

Today successors of the Belarusian, Polish and Lithuanian Jews come over to Belarus with volunteer camps to rebuild the cemeteries of their ancestors while we - people who live here - take such activities only occasionally. I cannot afford to restore and preserve all the historic tombstones in Belarus so my idea is to put them online.

I have established a website (graves.by) and had a geotagging application for Android built that would enable uploading pictures of the headstones and their GPS location and other related information on the server where they can be browsed by the global audience.

I believe that these tools available to anyone who has a mobile phone (a bit of patience and a portable battery) will make Belarusians more mindful of their history and culture. Having built this country-wide online cemetery we will refine our ethnic identity and design our unique way in the modern world.

No doubt, it will help others from across the world to find their roots and learn more about the place their ancestors come. In the long run it might eventually open Belarus for the international visitors. Ideally, a community will shape whose aim is not only to describe but also to preserve the cemeteries in Belarus which might have an impact on other issues our society is undergoing at the moment.

A little clean-up of a cemetery in Dzerzhinsk (Koidanowo) area... Before and after, job not complete.

I originally hoped to earn enough money to launch the platform by conducting guided tours. The website is already under construction, but, my own reserves are running low, and the design and functionality still need an upgrade at a cost of about $2,500 to be finalized. 

Old tombstones usually require careful cleaning to make inscriptions legible. This sensitive procedure involves professional cleaning materials which are only available overseas (UK, USA). The costs of general area clean-up and other equipment for indexing, fuel, transportation, and Internet traffic will also be partially covered by this campaign. Extra costs to start-up the project and keep it running in 2016 - $4,500.

If you feel you can be of help to this project, please, use the link to my campaign or contact me at your convenience!