Situated about 7 km west of Louny with around 5,000 inhabitants, a monastery named Porta Apostolorum was built in the 12th century, a name which developed into Postelberg, as the remaining settlement was called by the local German-speaking population of Bohemia that was expelled in 1945. The villages Březno, Dolejší Hůrky, Hradiště, Levonice, Malnice, Mradicem, Rvenice, Seletice, Seménkovice, Skupice, Strkovice and Vrbka are administrative parts of Postoloprty. Town website in Czech and photos. [February 2009]
POSTOLOPRTY: (I) US Commission No. ZCE 000382
Alternate name: Postelberg in German. Postoloprty is located in Bohemia, Louny at 50°22' N, 13°43' E, 7 km W of Louny, 38 miles WNW of Praha (Prague), 19 miles SSW of Teplice (Teplitz). The old cemetery is located at 150 m SW of chateau on Klasterni Street. Present town population is 5,000-25,000 with fewer than 10 Jews.
- Town: Mestsky Urad, 439 42 Postoloprty and Stanislav Vesely, magistrate (home: Klasterni ulica [Street], 439 42 Postoloprty).
- Regional: Jewish congregation: ZNO (Mr. Chaim Klein), Lipova 25, 415 01 Teplice; tel. 0417/26580 and Okresni Urad, Referat Kultury, Palackeho 2380, 440 01 Louny; tel. 0395/2012.
- Interested: Okresni Muzeum Louny, Pivovarska 28, 440 01 Louny; tel. 0395/2456 amd Statni Zidovske Muzeum, Jachymova 3, 110 01 Praha 1; tel. 02/2310634. Matej Vasilicin, Dragus 458, 439 42 Postoloprty; tel. 0397/93277.
Earliest known Jewish community was 1671. 1930 Jewish population was 114. 20 Jewish families settled there in 1671 with community established the same year. Jews moved to big towns in 20th century (161 people in 1900). Ancestors of Karl Marx; Austrian ministry [sic] Julius A. Glaser (1831-1885) and the grandmother of Franz Kafka (Julie Heller-Loewy, 1827-1908) lived here. The unlandmarked Jewish cemetery originated before 1708 with last known Conservative Jewish burial in last quarter of 19th century. The isolated urban hillside has no sign or marker. Reached by turning directly off Klasterni Street, access is open with permission of the plot owners. A continuous fence without any relation [sic[ surrounds the original cemetery with a locking gate entrance to the private plots. The approximate size of cemetery before WWII was perhaps 0.34 ha.
No stones or known mass graves exist. Within the limits of the site are new private buildings that own the cemetery property used for recreation (park, playground, athletic field) and private houses with gardens. Adjacent properties are recreational and residential. The site, nothing like an original Jewish cemetery, was visited. Vandalism occurred prior to World War II (1938 by Nazis), during World War II and 1945-1981 (1971-1985 when completely abolished).
Ladislav Mertl, Mgr. of Geography, Kubanske man. 1322/17, 100 00 Praha 10; tel. 02/743213 and Jiri Fiedler, z"l, Brdickova 1 916, 155 00 Praha 5; tel. 02/553340 completed survey on June 92. Documentation: Karl Tutte: Der politische Bezirk Saaz (1904); Jewish Cemeteries in Bohemia and Moravia(Prague 1980); notes of Statni Zidovske Muzeum Praha; cadastre of 1843, 1860, 1871; census of 1724, 1900, 1930, 1991. Other documentation was inaccessible. Vesely and Vasilicin (see above) were interviewed on 17 May 1992 in Postoloprty.
POSTOLOPRTY: (II) US Commission No. CZCE000383
Cemetery: (new cemetery) 1 km N, between the streets U Hrbitova and Na Dukle. The Jewish cemetery originated in last quarter of 19th century with last known Conservative or Progressive/Reform Jewish burial before 1943. The flat suburban site, separate but near cemeteries, has a sign or plaque in Czech mentioning Jews and the Holocaust. Reached by turning directly off a street through a little orchard, access is open to all via a continuous masonry wall and non-locking gate. The approximate size of cemetery is now about 0.24 ha.
1-20 stones, none in original locations, date from 20th century. The granite finely smoothed and inscribed stones have Hebrew and Czech inscriptions. The cemetery contains unmarked mass graves and grave of Soviet soldiers of 1945 but no structures. Teplice Jewish community owns the site used for a memorial. Adjacent properties are recreational and residential. Occasionally, private visitors and local residents stop. Vandalism occurred prior to World War II (1938 by Nazis), during World War II and 1945-1981. Local/municipal authorities and Jewish groups within country did restoration about 1980. Now, authorities occasionally clean or clear. Slight threat: uncontrolled access and vandalism. See above for survey information.