Portuguese Synagogue, Amsterdam
The Portuguese Synagogue in Amsterdam , called Esnoga (אסנוגה or Snoge , Dutch Portuguese -Israeli Synagogue ) is located on Visserplein Street, near the city center of Amsterdam .
history
The magnificent synagogue was built in the 17th century, the “golden century” of the Netherlands. The building owner was the Amsterdam community of Jews of Portuguese and Spanish descent ( Sephardim ). The inauguration took place on August 2, 1675. The building was declared a Rijksmonument .
The architecture of the Portuguese synagogue in Amsterdam was a model for other Sephardic synagogues. Its layout inspired the plans of the synagogues in Livorno (17th century), the Bevis Marks Synagogue (1701) in London , the oldest synagogue in England still in existence today, the Willemstad synagogue in Curaçao in the Netherlands Antilles (1732), the synagogue of Paramaribo in Suriname (1737), the Touro Synagogue in Newport , Rhode Island (1759), the oldest synagogue in North America, and the Shearith Israel Synagogue in New York City (1897). The synagogue was restored from 1953 to 1957.
The oldest still active Jewish library, the Ets Haim Library, is located in the building complex of the synagogue . A wooden ark and impressive candlesticks are part of the much-noticed inventory.
After the Second World War and the Holocaust, the community did not have more than 700 members. The building was not destroyed during the German occupation . It is open to the public today, not far from the Isaac de Pintos house .
literature
- Yosef Kaplan : Esnoga. In: Dan Diner (Ed.): Encyclopedia of Jewish History and Culture (EJGK). Volume 2: Co-Ha. Metzler, Stuttgart / Weimar 2012, ISBN 978-3-476-02502-9 , pp. 254-262.
- Judith CE Belinfante, David Ph. Cohen Paraira u. a .: De Snoge. Monument van Portugees Joodse cultuur. D'Arts, Amsterdam 1991, ISBN 90-9004349-7 .
- Merian issue 7: Amsterdam. Hoffmann and Campe, Hamburg 1978–1992, ISBN 3-455-27807-8 .
Web links
Coordinates: 52 ° 22 ′ 3 ″ N , 4 ° 54 ′ 19.4 ″ E