Zjaro – Rais.cw

Zjaro — formerly also called Sjaroo — is nowadays a residential district south-west of the former plantation Plantersrust. It alternately did belong to Plantersrust, as in 1853, and sometimes did not. Zjaro furthermore lies west of Mundu Nobo and south of, and at the foot of, Seru Pretu, formerly also called Seru di Sjaroo.

Joseph Jareau

The former small plantation from the 18th century is named after the French businessman Joseph Jareau, who settled on Curaçao in 1747. He lived behind the present Coromoto church, on the spot that still stands empty in the neighbourhood. In his shop in the city, Moda de Paris, he sold clothing and shoes from Martinique and Guadeloupe. Afterwards the man disappeared without a trace, and despite a search that even led to France, he remained untraceable.

Around 1800 the parcel, which lies at the foot of Seru Pretu, was transferred to the Roman Catholic Church. In 1835 a plantaadje was laid out here by Pirovano, who was pastor of the Santa Anna church in Otrobanda. He was known as someone who stood up for the rights of the enslaved. Pirovano called the plantaadje Bellevue, a name that was however quickly forgotten, because popular speech decided that it would remain "Zjaro".

But with reference to Pirovano, Seru Pretu, besides Seru di Sjaroo, received a new alias, namely "de Priesterberg" (the Priest's Hill).

The English who had landed at Piscadera on 1 January 1807 set up their headquarters in the house of pastor Pirovano at Zjaro and in a former dwelling house at Plantersrust.

Guido Vetter

In 1953, on the commission of the vicariate, the present church of Coromoto was built by the Austrian architect Guido Vetter, who also designed various other churches on Curaçao, such as those of Steenrijk, Soto, Sufisant and Zuid Bonam.

Zjaro is furthermore the neighbourhood where Monseigneur Wim Ellis was born and raised. His former house stands on a hill edge in the neighbourhood. Ellis also served as pastor at the Misa di Coromoto, which stands on the border with the neighbourhood Mundo Nobo. The church lies at the end of the Zjaroweg, the road where the funeral company El Consolador is now located. The Zjaroweg separates the lower-lying Mundo Nobo from Zjaro, the higher-lying part behind the church, with a view over the Rif area, Zakitó, the harbour and Willemstad.

Seru di Sjaroo

Zjaro lies at the foot of Seru Pretu (Black Mountain), which owes its name to the steep east side, which is rather black. Seru Pretu is 135 m high. It appears for the first time on the Cadastral map of 1962 as "Jarreau" and changed in spelling on the maps of 1982 and 1993 to "Zjaro". In the area around Seru Pretu various niches can be found in the rock wall, and according to the Archaeological Working Group various limestone sculptures can also be admired.

The hill could formerly be climbed only by a staircase on the north side, laid out in 1952 in Australië, a kunuku near Wishi at the northern foot of Seru Pretu. The staircase was for the maintenance of the transmission masts for radio and telephone traffic. Nowadays a radar post of the Coast Guard also stands on the hill. The staircase was closed off from above years ago against vandalism.

Through the construction of large water tanks in the belly of the hill, a wide, asphalted road was laid out on the south side.

Aloe and tambú

Zjaro was known in the past above all as an aloe plantation, whose production was transported to Aruba. That will probably also have been the reason why most streets in the neighbourhood are named after Aruban barios.

Zjaro was also known for its many fishermen, and also the fish saleswomen, who offered their wares in nearby neighbourhoods such as Wishi, Baraltwijk and Mundo Nobo too.

Zjaro is also a bario di tambú, where the singing of tambú was sometimes passed on from generation to generation and where tambú parties were traditionally also organised.

Cylinder graves

At the eastern foot of Seru Pretu, at the border between Zjaro and Santa Helena, there lay, according to Father Brenneker, a fairly large old cemetery. Because it lay on a slope it has been badly battered by the rainwater flowing down, but it still counts three graves that — years ago — were still fairly intact. Brenneker: "These cylinder graves are made of natural stone and lime. There also lay the remains of six or seven other graves, which all lay exactly east-west.

In the most south-eastern one a priest lies buried, as an elderly man says he heard from his grandfather. There also lay a loose stone with an inscription, but it has disappeared.

The two most northern cylinder graves bear a mysterious inscription: both have in mirror image the letters SB and a clear sign that resembles a pair of scales. According to that same older man, Sabelita and Simeon lie buried there," according to Brenneker.

According to residents of Zjaro the little cemetery holds sisters (nuns) who chose to be buried in the neighbourhood where they had worked all their lives.

The cemetery probably dates from the 18th century and the graves are certainly older than 1820: it was then made compulsory to bury the deceased in the official cemeteries, and burial in private burial grounds was permitted only by exception.

Crabs

On the slope of Seru Pretu, in the kunuku Australië and also on the Veerisberg, many crabs used to be caught in the rainy season with the help of torches. According to Father Brenneker these were regarded by many as a delicacy and brought in good money in those days: small crabs cost 12.5 or 15 cents and large crabs as much as a quarter (25 cents).

South of Seru Pretu, near Zjaro, lies the little piece of land Sasso, once the property of Miss C.R. Sasso.