Visitors leave stones at Seela Sella’s grave after Helsinki burial

Actress Seela Sella was buried at Helsinki’s Jewish cemetery on Tuesday, September 29, in a funeral attended by close family, Yle reported.

Sella died of cancer on Monday, September 28, aged 89. Jewish tradition calls for burial as soon as possible after death, sometimes on the same day, said Chaya Votkin, chair of the Helsinki Jewish congregation. In Finland and elsewhere, arranging a funeral within 24 hours can be difficult, she said.

It is customary to place a stone on a grave during a funeral or a later visit. The stones represent eternity and permanence, Votkin said. On Wednesday, dozens of stones and two candles had been left at Sella’s grave.

Candles are not part of Jewish burial tradition, Votkin said. They are lit at home, while a ner tamid, or eternal light, burns in the synagogue in memory of all the dead. She said she understood that visitors might bring candles to show their respect in their own way.

Sella acted across eight decades, working in theatre, film and television, as well as in recitation and radio plays. She received the State Prize for Performing Arts in 2009.

Among those who visited the grave on Wednesday was Tarja Ahokas, who said she remembered Sella from the 1970s television series Elämänmeno. Ahokas had not met the actress but said she seemed well liked by colleagues and audiences.