Eggplants and Cemeteries

Someone left these eggplants at the gate of a cemetery on 11th Street (the Second Cemetery of the Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue). I googled “eggplants and cemeteries” and yes, it’s a thing. According to a few sites I found it’s an offering to the spirit Oya, who is an orisha. This particular orisha has influence over death and cemeteries. God, I love the internet.

Eggplants at the Second Cemetery of the Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue

Stacy Horn

I've written six non-fiction books, the most recent is Damnation Island: Poor, Sick, Mad, and Criminal in 19th-Century New York.

View all posts by Stacy Horn →

10 thoughts on “Eggplants and Cemeteries

  1. I have run across this recently; eggplants at a cemetery. I’m glad you have this info.

  2. I just saw this yesterday at a cemetery in Riverside, CA. I didn’t know what it meant… There were also many pennies scattered about as well.

  3. There’s a cemetery in Ohio, Chestnut Grove or Witches Hill as legend goes, that supposedly has a witch buried there. She was hung by a noose, and buried where her body fell near the tree. There was no marker placed, only an iron gate surrounding the area of her body. Due to vandals, the gate has been removed but there are still iron spikes near ground level where the saw cut through the fence. I’ve been there twice, and both times an eggplant cut into nine equally sized pieces, were lined up by the entrance.

  4. We have property across from a cemetery. Apparently someone has been coming by and placing an egg plant with names of deceased people on it and a windmill pin wheel stuck in it for the past nine weeks. Just noticed when cleaning fence line. What does this mean.

  5. Rafaela, I only researched it a tiny bit, and I think this post said all I knew. Which was close to nothing. I always thought living across from a cemetery would be nice, except around Halloween I guess, when kids are acting up (and I was one of those kids back in the day).

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