The Olive Tree in Memory of the 60th Anniversary of Auschwitz’s Liberation is located in the garden of Escola Secundária Carlos Amarante, in Braga. It was planted on 15 June 2005 by Aaron Ram, then Ambassador of Israel to Portugal, during a commemorative act marking sixty years since the liberation of Auschwitz.

The memorial

The memorial consists of an olive tree and a commemorative plaque. Local references describe the plaque as dedicated to the memory of the victims of Auschwitz and mention the presence of a Yiddish lullaby. The site is therefore simple in form, but specific in meaning: a living tree placed beside a written mark of remembrance.

The school setting

The available sources do not state explicitly why Escola Secundária Carlos Amarante was chosen. Even so, its location in a school garden gives the memorial a clear public and educational character. It places the memory of Auschwitz within an everyday space of learning, rather than within a monumental or institutional setting.

The value of this memorial lies in its restraint: it preserves the memory of the Shoah through a modest gesture, combining a tree, a plaque, and the setting of a school.