What happens at a Stolperstein laying? What is the ceremony like?

A Stolperstein is laid in a small ceremony in front of the last home that the person chose freely. Relatives, neighbours and schoolchildren often take part. The names are read aloud, and flowers are often laid. Afterwards the stone lies flush with the pavement, so visitors bow to read it.

Before the ceremony

Local volunteers research the person’s life in archives and look for relatives. They ask the municipality for permission, because the pavement is public ground. Only then can the stone be laid. The research comes first, and the ceremony is the final step.

How the ceremony goes

A stone is laid in a small ceremony. Relatives, neighbours and schoolchildren often take part. The names are read, and flowers are often laid. For many years, Gunter Demnig laid most of the stones himself. The person stands at the centre of the ceremony: the name is spoken, and then the stone stays in the pavement.

The stone itself

A stone is a concrete block of about 10 by 10 by 10 centimetres with a brass plate on top. The text is stamped into the brass by hand, letter by letter. Since 2005 the stones have been made by hand by the sculptor Michael Friedrichs-Friedlaender in Berlin. Outdoors, the brass turns brown and then dark. On busy streets, shoes polish the stones. Elsewhere they need cleaning.

After the ceremony

Anyone may clean a Stolperstein, and no permission is needed. Use a brass or copper polish on a soft cloth, not directly on the stone, and polish again with a clean cloth. Do not use steel wool or wire brushes, because they scratch the brass. A kneeling pad helps. Stones should be cleaned at least once a year, and more often if possible. Many people clean them on 27 January, International Holocaust Remembrance Day, or on 4 May, Remembrance of the Dead in the Netherlands. In Germany, 9 November, the anniversary of the November pogroms of 1938, is also a common day for it.

If a stone is damaged, stolen or removed during roadworks, tell the local Stolpersteine group or the municipality, so that it can be put back or replaced.

To find the stones near you, open the map on Stolpersteine.app.