A Stolperschwelle is a long strip of brass with one text for a whole group. The word is German. In English it is called a 'stumbling threshold'. The Stolperschwelle is used at places where very many people were victims.
How it differs from a Stolperstein
An ordinary Stolperstein is for one person. A Stolperschwelle carries one text for the whole group instead. A Stolperstein is a concrete block of about 10 by 10 by 10 centimetres with a brass plate on top. Its text is stamped into the brass by hand, letter by letter. Families get stones side by side, so they are together again in front of their home.
Where the project comes from
The German artist Gunter Demnig, born in 1947 in Berlin, had the idea in 1992. On 16 December 1992 he set a first stone in front of Cologne's historic town hall. Stolperstein is German for 'stumbling stone'. There are now more than 100,000 stones in about 30 European countries. The first Stolpersteine in the Netherlands were laid in Borne in 2007, and Belgium followed in 2009. In the Netherlands and Belgium together there are more than 15,600 Stolpersteine, according to figures from Stichting 18 September in Eindhoven.
The first Stolpersteine for individual people were laid in Cologne in 1995, at first without official permission. Stones are laid in a small ceremony, where names are read and flowers are often laid.
Who is commemorated
The stones commemorate groups persecuted by the Nazis between 1933 and 1945. These include Jews, Sinti and Roma, people persecuted for political reasons, resistance members, homosexual men, Jehovah's Witnesses, victims of the euthanasia murders of sick and disabled people, forced labourers, deserters and conscientious objectors. Stones are also laid for people who survived, for example by fleeing or going into hiding, so that families are shown complete.
Since 2005 the stones have been made by hand by the sculptor Michael Friedrichs-Friedlaender in Berlin. Since 2019, Stichting 18 September in Eindhoven has kept a database of Stolpersteine in the Netherlands and Belgium, and now also of stones in other countries.
Find stones near you on the map of Stolpersteine.app.
Read on
How do I find Stolpersteine near me?
Search the free Stolpersteine map by street, city or name, or use the free app for iPhone and Android. You can also plan a walk past nearby stones.
A Stolperstein in front of my house: what does it mean?
A Stolperstein in front of a house marks the last home its person chose freely. You can look up the address on the map and keep the stone clean.
Why are there several Stolpersteine in front of one house?
Several Stolpersteine lie in front of one house because each stone is for one person and lies at the last home that person freely chose.
