Old Synagogue (Erfurt)

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The Old Synagogue in Erfurt is a former synagogue and with an age of over 900 years it is the oldest surviving synagogue in Europe. It is located in Erfurt's old town in the inner courtyard of the Fischmarkt - Michaelisstraße - Waagegasse block .

The approximately 750-year-old mikvah, discovered in 2007 during construction work behind the Krämerbrücke , belongs to the synagogue . The important Jewish treasure of Erfurt , which was found in the immediate vicinity of the synagogue in 1998 , has been on display in the synagogue since October 2009. The city administration of Erfurt is striving to include the ensemble of synagogue, mikveh and treasure on the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites .

Old Synagogue Erfurt

history

View from the northwest, with one of the gate entrances built in the course of the conversion.
Exposing the medieval mikveh.

A piece of the western wall was built around 1094, as a wood analysis showed. This is the oldest surviving part of the synagogue. Another piece of this wall comes from a second construction phase in the 12th century.

The majority of the structure was built around 1270, when a representative synagogue was built, around the same time as the Prague Old New Synagogue . Around 1300 the synagogue was rebuilt again by adding a storey and an extension to the north.

In 1349 a devastating pogrom took place at the time of the plague , in which the Jews of the city were murdered. The synagogue was then used as a warehouse, for which numerous alterations were made from 1350 onwards. Among other things, false ceilings were put in, a new roof was built and the building was built with a basement. Gate passages were added to the north and east facade. The use as a warehouse remained almost unchanged for the next 500 years. It was not until the end of the 19th century that the building became part of the “Zur Feuerkugel” restaurant and converted into a dance hall. Later an additional bowling alley was built in the basement.

Due to the frequent renovations, the synagogue was no longer recognizable as such and historically no longer known as such, which is why it survived the Nazi era unscathed.

museum

In 1992 construction studies showed that the synagogue is of particular cultural and historical value. Shortly before, however , the trust property company had already sold the building to an investor who wanted to use it again for gastronomic purposes. In 1998 the city of Erfurt bought the old synagogue. Since then it has been renovated, and since October 27, 2009 it has been presenting as a museum, in particular, medieval material evidence of the history of the Jewish community in Erfurt. The museum is part of the exhibition Jewish Life in Erfurt , which is also shown in the medieval mikveh, the small synagogue and the new synagogue . A documentation on the building history of the synagogue sheds light on further aspects of the Jewish community history.

The “Erfurt Synagogue Evenings”, organized by the city and the Association for the History and Antiquity of Erfurt , with lectures and music, take place once a month in the Old Synagogue .

Awards

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Europe's oldest synagogue building renovated. Deutsche Welle report from December 20, 2007
  2. ↑ Official information on the world heritage application at www.juedisches-leben.erfurt.de
  3. ^ Website of the Old Synagogue ( Memento from October 17, 2009 in the Internet Archive )
  4. ^ Website Erfurt, Alte Synagoge ( Memento from January 11, 2012 in the Internet Archive )
  5. ↑ Bund Deutscher Architekten (BDA) Nike 2013 - Nike for Symbolism , accessed on June 25, 2013

literature

  • Elmar Altwasser, Gerhard Schade, Karin Sczech u. a .: Old Synagogue and Mikveh in Erfurt . Bussert and Stadeler, Jena u. a. 2009, ISBN 978-3-932906-97-8 , ( Jewish life Erfurt ).
  • Sven Ostritz (ed.): The old synagogue . Beier & Beran, Langenweißbach 2009, ISBN 978-3-941171-23-7 , ( The medieval Jewish culture in Erfurt 4).

See also

Web links

Commons : Old Synagogue  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 50 ° 58 ′ 43.1 ″  N , 11 ° 1 ′ 45.4 ″  E