In 1994, the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Hanover, designed by the Italian artist Michelangelo Pistoletto, was erected on Opernplatz, one of Hanover's central squares. Built on the initiative of the Memoriam Association and financed through individual donations, the memorial next, to the Opera House, commemorates more than 6,800 Jews who were victims of National Socialism. To date, 1,935 names have been carved in stone. Their age at the time of deportation was added to the names of the deportees, for the other victims the birth year was added. As far as is known, the subsequent fate of each individual victim was recorded. If the place of death could not be determined, "missing" was noted, as was customary elsewhere.