The building: Dakar Memorial
Location: Mt. Herzl, Jerusalem
Building Year: 1971
Architect: David Anatol Brotzkus
Structural Engineers:Y. Achbert, A. Varshevsky
The memorial for the crew members of the Dakar submarine is located in the
national and military cemetery on Mt. Herzl, Jerusalem. The submarine and its
entire crew disappeared on their way to Israel in 1968. The memorial site is located
underground, and one element of it, which protrudes above ground, can be seen from
the military cemetery.
This element is an elevated elliptical platform coated in stone, with an exposed
concrete wall rising at its center. Visitors descend into the underground space
through a covered corridor, which is illuminated by three small windows. This
corridor leads to the central elliptical space, whose form can be apprehended when it is
observed from above.
This space is illuminated by light entering through a crack that separates the
structure’s ceiling from the concrete wall at its center. The entire interior is constructed
of exposed concrete, which has a minimalist appearance. The curved meeting points
between the floor, walls and ceiling, and the tall entrances and exits, are reminiscent
of submarine design. The names of the submarine crew members are etched on
the walls. Visitors exit the space towards the trees and brush of the Jerusalem Hills.
