Michelstadt synagogue
The Michelstadt Synagogue is located in Michelstadt , a Hessian town in the Odenwald district . It was built by the Jewish community in 1791 and is located in the old town, Mauerstraße 19, directly on the former city wall .
history
The location of the Michelstädter Synagoge reflects the social status of Judaism at the end of the 18th century: Jews were allowed to settle within the city wall, but only at the very edge, in a ghetto . The building from 1791 replaced an older previous building in the same place.
The Michelstädter Synagogue is one of the few synagogues that have survived in southern Hesse after the Nazi persecution of the Jews . During the November pogrom of November 9, 1938, the interior was completely devastated, but the structure itself was unscathed, as was the Hebrew inscription. After that the building was used as a storage room.
At the end of the 1970s, the synagogue was renovated as part of the renovation of the old town, not least thanks to the then Michelstädter Mayor Erwin Hasenzahl , but no longer used for services . The state rabbi Dr. IE Lichtigfeld Museum established. The museum bears the name of the former rabbi Isaak Emil Lichtigfeld , who was responsible for the Jewish communities of the State of Hesse from 1954 to 1967.
There is now a Jewish community in Michelstadt again. On February 25, 2005, a Torah scroll was solemnly brought to the synagogue. Since then, services have been held in the synagogue again.
building
The building is located in the old town of Michelstadt. The main axis in north-south direction is perpendicular to Mauerstraße. It is built in a late baroque but simple form with a hipped roof . Inside there is a narrow women's gallery running around on three sides . In the freestanding east wall there is an Aron ha-Qodesch (Torah shrine; alignment of the interior). There is access to the school building to the west on the first floor. The last yoke is separated from the main room by a wall. Nearby in the city wall there is a defense / watchtower, the bees' market gate and the military man's house. The keystone with the year 1791 and the portal inscription in Hebrew from Numbers 24 : 5 : " How lovely are your huts, Jacob, and your homes, Israel " are valuable .
museum
The State Rabbi Dr. IE Lichtigfeld-Museum exhibits cult objects , archival material and photo reproductions, which are supposed to commemorate the former Jewish residents of Michelstadt. It gives an insight into the religious , social and political conditions of the Odenwald Jews in the past centuries.
See also
- List of synagogues destroyed in the German Reich from 1933 to 1945
- Rabbi Seckel Löb Wormser (1768–1847)
literature
- Thea Altaras : Synagogues and Jewish ritual immersion baths in Hesse - What happened since 1945? 2nd edition, Königstein im Taunus 2007, ISBN 978-3-7845-7794-4 , pp. 356-357.
- Folkhard Cremer u. a .: "Dehio". Hessen II - Darmstadt district . Berlin 2008. ISBN 978-3-422-03117-3 , p. 580.
- G. Ulrich Großmann: Dumont art travel guide Central and South Hesse . Cologne 1995, p. 324.
- Hans Teubner and Sonja Bonin: Cultural monuments in Hesse. Odenwaldkreis. Published by the State Office for Monument Preservation Hessen , Vieweg, Braunschweig / Wiesbaden 1998 ( Monument Topography Federal Republic of Germany ), ISBN 3-528-06242-8 , p. 475f.
Web links
- Information about the synagogue on the website of the city of Michelstadt, accessed on July 11, 2016
- Michelstadt synagogue near Alemannia Judaica
Coordinates: 49 ° 40 ′ 45.1 ″ N , 9 ° 0 ′ 18.7 ″ E