Jews' Gate Cemetery

Jews’ Gate Cemetery can be found along Queen’s Road, where it connects with Engineer Road, right next to the monument of the Pillars of Hercules, depicting “The Ancient World”, around fifty yards from the entrance to the Nature Reserve. Today the graveyard is protected by the law of Gibraltar.

A raised pathway leads over the graves, which are mainly laid out in a horizontal Sephardic (Jews of Spain, Portugal, North Africa and the Middle East) style. Unfortunately, due to being exposed to the elements for such a long a time, many of the gravestones have lost their inscriptions or have become illegible. Others have literally just crumbled away over the centuries.

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The graves best preserved were until recently in fact covered by a thick layer of peat and mud. Thankfully this has enabled much insight into the past Jewish history of the Rock. Having said this, a lot more research remains to be done as many of the graves in this old cemetery remain to be identified.

Interesting Fact

To date, nobody knows for certainty the reason behind the Jewish community burying members of their dead at this specific location. It seems the origins of Jews’ Gate Cemetery are still an unsolved mystery.

The most probable theory that exists, is that during that era, the most noticeable and accessible cemetery in use by Christians, was right on the border of Spain. This sort of no-man’s land between British and Spanish soil is today the area now covered by the airports runway. Spain at the time were heavily subject to the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht, a mandate regarding the expulsion of all Jews, hence the need for this alternate location.

Photo of Jew's Gate Cemetery from down below and a partial view of the "Rock" behind.