Great German Synagogue
The Great German Synagogue (Italian: Scuola Grande Tedesca) is one of five synagogues in the Jewish Ghetto of Venice, Italy. Established in 1528, it is the oldest Venetian synagogue.[1][2]
Great German Synagogue | |
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![]() The synagogue building seen from the square of the Ghetto Nuovo | |
Religion | |
Affiliation | Orthodox Judaism |
Status | Inactive |
Location | |
Location | ![]() |
Architecture | |
Completed | 1528 |
The synagogue was most recently restored between 2016 and 2017 by the World Monuments Fund.[3] It is open to the public through the Jewish Museum of Venice.
History
The Great German Synagogue was built in 1528[4][5] by members of the local Ashkenazi community. A stone plaque on the west wall of the building records its construction at the expense of two donors.[6] Like the other four synagogues in Venice, it was termed a scuola ("School"), rather than sinagoga ("Synagogue"), in the same way in which Ashkenazi Jews refer to the synagogue as the shul (שול) in Yiddish.
Architecture
Built on top of a preexisting structure, the prayer hall features an irregular shape.[6] The bimah was originally placed in the middle of the room in accordance with the traditional "central bimah" configuration,[7] and only later moved to the north end of the sanctuary.[8]
Gallery
- The ark
- The bimah
- The women's gallery
- The ark projecting over the rear canal
References
- Davis & Ravid 2001, p. 43.
- Tigay 1994, p. 542.
- Venice Synagogues Window Restoration. World Monument Fund. Retrieved March 16, 2020.
- Stiefel 2016, pp. 47–48.
- The synagogues. Jewish Museum of Venice. Retrieved July 14, 2016.
- Krinsky 1996, p. 379.
- Turner 1979, p. 293.
- Concina, Camerino & Calabi 1991, pp. 102, 107.
Cited literature
- Concina, Ennio; Camerino, Ugo; Calabi, Donatella (1991). La Città degli Ebrei. Il Ghetto di Venezia: Architettura e Urbanistica (in Italian). Venice: Albrizzi Editore. ISBN 8831754890.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
- Davis, Robert C.; Ravid, Benjamin, eds. (2001). The Jews of Early Modern Venice. Baltimore–London: Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN 0-8018-6512-3.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
- Krinsky, Carol H. (1996). Synagogues of Europe: Architecture, History, Meaning. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications. ISBN 9780486290782.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
- Stiefel, Barry L. (2016). Jews and the Renaissance of Synagogue Architecture, 1450–1730. London–New York: Routledge. ISBN 978-1317320326.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
- Tigay, Alan M., ed. (1994). The Jewish Traveler: Hadassah Magazine's Guide to the World's Jewish Communities and Sights. Northvale, N.J.–Jerusalem: Jason Aronson. ISBN 978-1-56821-078-0.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
- Turner, Harold W. (1979). From Temple to Meeting House: The Phenomenology and Theology of Places of Worship. The Hague–Paris–New York: Walter de Gruyter. ISBN 1850432368.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
Further reading
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Scola Grande Tedesca (Venice). |
- Curiel, Roberta; Cooperman, Bernard Dov (1990). The Ghetto of Venice. London–New York: Tauris Parke. ISBN 1850432368.