International Jewish Cemetery Project - Romania C US Commission Reference Number RO/MM/03
Alternate Hungarian name: Kovas. Located in Maramures County at 47°32' 23°35', 14.8 kilometers S of Baia Mare and approximately 17 km from Baia Mare.
- LOCAL: Comunitatea Evreilor (Baia Mare), Str. Somesului Nr. 5, 4800 Baia Mare, Jud. Maramures, Romania. Tel: (40-62) 211-231.
- REGIONAL: Comunitatea Evreilor (Bucuresti), Str. Sf. Vineri 9-11, Bucuresti, Tel: (40-1) 157-441.
- Unpaid caretakers of their own property: Mihalca Alexandru, Coas nr. 387, Com. Sacalaseni, Jud. Maramures. Tel: 109 (reached through the switchboard operator in Coas or more likely Sacalaseni).
Turn off from the road from Baia Mare. Drive across the river and through the village, continuing up the hill on the road toward Copalnic. The cemetery is above the village, about 100 m below and on the other side of the road from the Orthodox cemetery. It is visible on the left-hand side of the road, in the garden of one of the last houses in the village. The rural-agricultural flat land on a hillside, separate but near other cemeteries, has a non-locking gate with a fence. Access is open with permission.
The 9x18m (162 sq m) cemetery in Coas (Kovas) is well cared for by a delightful and dedicated elderly couple, though they do receive no compensation from the local Jewish Community. They have lived there for at least three decades and have put in a great deal of work over the years to maintain the site in good condition. There are fully-grown trees in the yard (not fruit trees). The caretakers took pains to explain that they do not let grazing animals into the space or, 'only the birds' as they put it. The cemetery is adjacent to the caretaker's farmyard and is part of their property. To enter the site, one must first enter through their front gate, and go behind the barn to the cemetery. The only threat to the site is further weather erosion of the stones.
23 limestone or sandstone flat shaped, smoothed and Hebrew-inscribed and/or with carved relief decoration gravestones: 19 standing (one of which is an intentionally horizontal but mostly over-grown, coffin-shaped marker), 1 standing half broken, 3 fallen. One stone is an intentionally horizontal, coffin-shaped marker, but was covered in vegetation, so it was not possible to determine whether it had Sephardic inscriptions. Also, one stone was exceptionally large and showed traces of blue paint. Probably no stones were removed. Vegetation and water drainage are not a problem. The owner of the site is unknown. Adjacent property is an orchard and home with garden and pasture. The cemetery has had private visitors. One Jewish man from Timisoara was a regular visitor prior to 1990, but has not visited since. No vandalism is ever remembered.
John DeMetrick and Christina Crowder, (formerly of Cluj, they have no further information) , completed this survey on 22 April 2000 using a list of cemeteries known by the Jewish Community in Baia Mare. They visited the site on 13 April 2000 and interviewed Mihalca Alexandru, Coas nr. 387, Com. Sacalaseni, Jud. Maramures. Tel: 109 (reached through the switchboard operator in Coas or more likely Sacalaseni).
[UPDATE] Photos by Charles Burns [July 2018]