The "Pit" Memorial, located on Melnikayte Street in Minsk, is dedicated to the victims of the Holocaust, particularly the prisoners of the Minsk Ghetto, who were massacred by the Nazis on March 2, 1942. About 5,000 Jews were shot at this site, including children from a Jewish orphanage who, along with their caretakers, were buried alive in a large pit. This memorial has become a symbol of tragedy and a reminder of the horrific events that took place during World War II.
The first obelisk at this site was erected in 1947, and it bore inscriptions in Russian and Yiddish—something rare during the Soviet era, when the Jewish identity of Holocaust victims was rarely emphasized on monuments. This obelisk commemorates the thousands of Jews who perished at the hands of the Nazis. The Yiddish text, written by poet Chaim Maltinsky, is part of the memorial. Despite its great symbolic significance, shortly after the monument was installed, the poet and the stonecutter who worked on the memorial were repressed as part of the Soviet fight against "cosmopolitanism."
In 2000, the memorial complex was enhanced with a bronze sculptural composition titled "The Last Way," created by architect Leonid Levin and sculptors Alexander Finsky and Elza Pollack. The composition depicts 27 doomed martyrs slowly descending 17 steps into the pit where death awaited them. The figures are unified into a collective image — a symbol of horror and grief, felt by every visitor walking down the same staircase. The abstract style of the figures — with rough lines and cracks on the surface of the metal — embodies the distortion brought by death.
The memorial consists of several parts: the obelisk itself, the sculptural group "The Last Way," and the Avenue of the Righteous Among the Nations — those Belarusians who saved Jews despite risking their own lives. Each tree on the avenue honors one of these righteous individuals. Every year on March 2, mourning rallies are held here to commemorate the victims of the Minsk Ghetto and honor the heroes who saved lives.
The "Pit" Memorial is not just a monument, it is a symbol of a horrifying crime against humanity. The tragedy of this place is felt in every element, from the black granite to the sorrowful figures descending the steps.
