Synagogue (Görlitz)
| Kulturforum Görlitzer Synagoge | |
|---|---|
 Görlitz Synagogue |
|
| Data | |
| place | Otto-Müller-Strasse 3, Goerlitz , Germany |
| builder | Lossow & Kühne |
| Architectural style | Neoclassicism , Art Nouveau |
| Construction year | 1911 |
| Coordinates | 51 ° 9 ′ 9 ″ N , 14 ° 59 ′ 30 ″ E |
The synagogue in Görlitz is a Jewish house of worship built between 1909 and 1911 with predominantly neoclassical features. During the November pogroms on November 9, 1938 , it suffered only minor damage and was the only synagogue in what is now Saxony that was not devastated that night. Since there was no longer a Jewish community in Görlitz after the Second World War , the building fell into disrepair in the decades that followed. Comprehensive renovation and restoration began in 1991 and was completed in December 2020. Due to the Covid-19 pandemicthe opening ceremony has been postponed to 2021; it took place on July 12, 2021.
history
The Jewish community grew from 150 to 643 members between 1852 and 1880. The old synagogue on Langenstrasse in the old town of Görlitz, the construction of which was seen in 1853 as a sign of tolerance at the time, quickly became too small for the growing Jewish community. The new synagogue was built according to the plans of the Dresden architects Lossow & Kühne . The glass painter Josef Goller and the sculptor Karl Groß were involved in the artistic design . As with their main work, the Leipzig Central Station (1909–1915), the architects used the means of expression of neoclassicism, which were enriched inside with elements of the late Art Nouveau. This distinguishes this sacred building from the synagogues of earlier decades (cf. New Synagogue in Berlin, built 1859–1866 ) in the Moorish style . After two years of construction, the synagogue was opened on March 7, 1911. The synagogue has two prayer rooms ; including a large domed hall, which was originally designed for approx. 550 prayers and, after the renovation, which was completed in 2021, for 310 prayers. The weekday synagogue is intended for 50 prayers.
From 1933 to 1945 under the rule of the National Socialists , Jews fled Görlitz or were deported. The synagogue suffered only minor damage during the November pogroms in 1938. The fire brigades throughout the Reich had received orders not to extinguish the Jewish buildings that had been set on fire and to refuse any assistance. The Görlitz professional fire brigade received this order too late. When the synagogue caught fire, the fire trucks deployed and successfully fought the fire. The last service took place in September 1940. Without an intact Jewish community, the building remained unused.
After the Second World War, the Soviet military administration transferred the synagogue to the nearest Jewish community in Dresden. The community could not afford the maintenance costs and sold the building to the city of Görlitz in November 1963. This declared the synagogue a cultural monument , but waived maintenance investments, so that the building fell into disrepair in the following time.
In 1988 a memorial plaque was put up for the Jewish victims from the time of National Socialism . In 1991 the synagogue was structurally secured by resolution of the Saxon state parliament and the Görlitz city parliament.
The then Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer spoke here as a laudatory speaker for the award of the International Bridge Prize . Shortly afterwards, the corresponding usage permit was revoked for reasons of building supervision.
In November 2008, after the necessary partial restoration, the building was reopened as a cross-denominational cultural and meeting place. An extensive detailed renovation was then carried out. Among other things, the former eight chandeliers in the domed hall had to be reconstructed. The opening originally announced for December 2020 after complete renovation has been postponed to 2021 due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. The renovation cost around 10 million euros.
There is still no larger Jewish community in Görlitz that could utilize and maintain the premises. Therefore, the usage concept provides that the dome hall can be booked for events and conferences. There will be tours on Jewish history in the synagogue. The weekday synagogue is to be reserved for religious services by the Jewish community.
On October 13, 2020, a concert with the pianist Martha Argerich and the cellist Mischa Maisky took place in the synagogue .
Reconstruction of the Star of David
The Star of David on the top of the dome was removed during the November pogroms in 1938 and "smashed in the street with great cheers". As a result, the synagogue was desecrated. The renovation plans in the early 1990s did not include a reconstruction of the Star of David. Until 2017, the Jewish community in Dresden also spoke out against a reconstruction. This opinion has since changed.
Both the Förderkreis Görlitzer Synagoge eV , which started the discussions again in mid-2020 with an open letter, as well as the city administration and the Jewish community of Dresden are in favor of re-establishing the Star of David.
During the renovation of the roof in 1992, no possibility was created to reinstall a Star of David. By a city council resolution in December 2020, the mayor was commissioned to commission a structural report on the technical feasibility. The result of this report allows the planned installation of the Star of David on the roof. The musician and chairman of the Görlitz Jewish community, Alex Jacobowitz , promised a five-figure amount. An anonymous donor transferred an additional 70,000 euros to the city in mid-May 2021 for this purpose. The Star of David should now be put on by the end of 2021.
gallery
portal
Entrance
dome
Domed hall
Lions at the base of the dome in the domed hall
Torah shrine
literature
- Norbert Haase: The synagogue at Görlitz. (= Jewish miniatures , Volume 31) Hentrich & Hentrich, Berlin 2010, ISBN 978-3-942271-02-8 .
- Alex Jacobowitz : The New Görlitz Synagogue. Hentrich & Hentrich, Leipzig 2021, ISBN 978-3-95565-463-4 .
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Official Gazette of the large district town of Görlitz, 2020 edition, No. 12: Address by the mayor, page 4.
- ^ Jüdische Allgemeine: Kulturforum Görlitzer Synagoge will open on July 4, 2021.
- ↑ Synagogue in Görlitz will once again be a place for encounter and prayer , mdr.de from July 12, 2021.
- ↑ Old Synagogue Literaturhaus: Jewish Görlitz .
- ↑ The consecration of the Catholic Church in Marklissa. In: Illustrirte Zeitung , July 29, 1854, p. 3 (online at ANNO ). : “It is a pleasant phenomenon of the tolerance that prevails in our days that even in cities where a confession is predominant, the weaker party is free to build its houses of worship and schools. The not very numerous Catholic community in Görlitz received a church last year and the Jewish community there a synagogue. "
- ↑ former synagogue - Görlitz. In: German Foundation for Monument Protection. German Foundation for Monument Protection, accessed on July 13, 2021 .
- ↑ Support group Görlitzer Synagoge e. V .: history and meaning .
- ↑ Support group Görlitzer Synagoge e. V .: The building .
- ^ Sächsische Zeitung: Synagogue gets its candlesticks back , September 3, 2020.
- ^ Sächsische Zeitung: So beautiful, but still closed , article from December 30, 2020.
- ↑ Kulturforum Görlitzer Synagoge: goerlitz.de. Usage and operating concept for the Kulturforum Görlitzer Synagoge , as of September 29, 2017.
- ↑ Lausitz Festival: Martha Argerich & Mischa Maisky LIVE from the Görlitz Synagogue on YouTube , October 13, 2020.
- ↑ Deutschlandfunk Kultur - From the Jewish World: Restoration of the former Görlitz Synagogue - City Cultural Center - with or without Star of David? , September 4, 2020.
- ^ Förderkreis Görlitzer Synagoge eV: Put the Star of David back on the Görlitzer Synagoge! , November 11, 2020.
- ↑ Berliner Zeitung: "That mustn't be the last word in history" , September 25, 2020.
- ^ Sächsische Zeitung: City Councilor for the Return of the Star of David , November 28, 2020.
- ^ Sächsische Zeitung: Jewish community donates for the new Star of David March 1, 2021.
- ↑ Radio Erzgebirge: Anonymous donor transfers 70,000 euros to Görlitz , May 21, 2021.