Great Maharscha Synagogue

Ostroh synagogue

Interior with the four pillars (1922)

The Maharscha Great Synagogue was a synagogue in Ostroh , Ukraine . It was built in the first half of the 17th century.

history

The Jewish community of Ostroh can be traced back to the 15th century and is therefore one of the oldest communities in Volhynia in the Polish-Lithuanian Empire. The synagogue is named after Rabbi Samuel Edels , who lived and taught in Ostroh and is also known as the Maharscha . It was probably built shortly after 1627. Only a few years later it was temporarily desecrated during the Khmelnytskyi uprising in 1648 and used for stalls.

Almost 300 years later, it was badly damaged during the German occupation and the murder of the Jewish population in the Holocaust . After the war it was repaired and initially used as a pharmacological warehouse. After this was moved to another location, it fell into disrepair.

Since the turn of the millennium there have been and are plans to restore it and use it as a museum.

architecture

The architectural style of the Maharscha Synagogue in Ostroh is very similar to the Great Suburban Synagogue in Lemberg, which was built a few years earlier . Hence, it is believed that it was designed by the same architect ( Giacomo Medleni ). This was probably inspired by (fictional) reconstructions by the Spanish Jesuit father Juan Bautista Villalpando , in which he depicted the Solomonic Temple in Jerusalem.

In the middle of the main hall are four octagonal columns, which divide the cross vault into nine equally sized fields of flat arches. This made it possible to span a larger space than was previously possible. The bima stood between the pillars in the middle of the room. This type of design is known as the nine-field or four-pillar synagogue and was also chosen for the Great Suburban Synagogue in Lviv , which was built around the same time . From here it spread to the west until the 19th century.

There are three large windows on each side of the synagogue.

Similar synagogues

The Portuguese Synagogue of Amsterdam (built 1675)
The Ashkenazi Synagogue of Amsterdam (built 1671)

References

↑ http://jewish-heritage-europe.eu/have-your-say/the-great-maharsha-synagogue-in-ostroh-memory-and-oblivion-have-we-reached-the-point-of-no -return All information about the Ostroher Synagogue. Retrieved February 13, 2018.

Web links

Commons : Synagoge in Ostroh - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

[1] ttp://jewish-heritage-europe.eu/have-your-say/the-great-maharsha-synagogue-in-ostroh-memory-and-oblivion-have-we-reached-the-point-of-no -return All information about the Ostroher Synagogue. Retrieved February 13, 2018.