The High Synagogue () was a former

Orthodox Orthodox, Orthodoxy, or Orthodoxism may refer to: Religion * Orthodoxy, adherence to accepted norms, more specifically adherence to creeds, especially within Christianity and Judaism, but also less commonly in non-Abrahamic religions like Neo-pag ...

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

congregation and

synagogue A synagogue, also called a shul or a temple, is a place of worship for Jews and Samaritans. It is a place for prayer (the main sanctuary and sometimes smaller chapels) where Jews attend religious services or special ceremonies such as wed ...

, also known as the Tall Synagogue (corresponding to its height), located at Jozefa 38 Street, in the

Kazimierz Kazimierz (; ; ) is a historical district of Kraków and Kraków Old Town, Poland. From its inception in the 14th century to the early 19th century, Kazimierz was an independent city, a royal city of the Crown of the Polish Kingdom, located sou ...

district of

Kraków , officially the Royal Capital City of Kraków, is the List of cities and towns in Poland, second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city has a population of 804,237 ...

, in the

Małopolskie Voivodeship Lesser Poland Voivodeship ( ) is a voivodeship in southern Poland. It has an area of , and a population of 3,404,863 (2019). Its capital and largest city is Kraków. The province's name recalls the traditional name of a historic Polish region, L ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

. Completed in 1563 in the

late Renaissance Mannerism is a style in European art that emerged in the later years of the Italian High Renaissance around 1520, spreading by about 1530 and lasting until about the end of the 16th century in Italy, when the Baroque style largely replaced it. ...

style, the synagogue served as a house of prayer until World War II when its interior was destroyed by

Nazis Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

in 1939. Renovations of the synagogue occurred in 1863; and during 1970 and 1971. Since 2005, the former synagogue has operated as a

Jewish museum A Jewish museum is a museum which focuses upon Jews and may refer seek to explore and share the Jewish experience in a given area. Notable Jewish museums include: Albania * Solomon Museum, Berat Australia * Jewish Museum of Australia, Melbourn ...

Early history

In the second half of the 16th century, a wealthy merchant known only as Israel submitted his request for building a Jewish house of worship to king

Sigismund II Augustus Sigismund II Augustus (, ; 1 August 1520 – 7 July 1572) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, the son of Sigismund I the Old, whom Sigismund II succeeded in 1548. He was the first ruler of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and t ...

. He obtained consent and in 1563 he commenced construction (some sources suggest the years 1556-1563). According to one hypothesis, the synagogue was built by

Sephardic Jews Sephardic Jews, also known as Sephardi Jews or Sephardim, and rarely as Iberian Peninsular Jews, are a Jewish diaspora population associated with the historic Jewish communities of the Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal) and their descendant ...

, perhaps from Greece or Italy. It was the third synagogue to be erected in Kazimierz. The prayer rooms were located on the second floor above the ground floor shops. The interior walls of the sanctuary featured paintings of scenes in

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

, including the "Tomb of the Israelite Kings," "

Western Wall The Western Wall (; ; Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation: ''HaKosel HaMa'arovi'') is an ancient retaining wall of the built-up hill known to Jews and Christians as the Temple Mount of Jerusalem. Its most famous section, known by the same name ...

," and a handsome pair of lions in the

women's gallery The Women's Gallery was a collectively established and run art gallery in Wellington, New Zealand, showing only the work of women, that ran for four years between 1980 and 1984. History In 1977, artist Joanna Paul developed a project called ...

World War II

During the

occupation of Poland Occupation commonly refers to: *Occupation (human activity), or job, one's role in society, often a regular activity performed for payment *Occupation (protest), political demonstration by holding public or symbolic spaces *Military occupation, th ...

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

stripped the interior of all furnishings. However the seventeenth-century baroque chanukah candlestick, which was transported to Wawel castle, is the only element of the equipment of the synagogue that survived the war. Currently, it is on permanent exhibition in the Old Synagogue at ulica Szeroka 24. The ceiling and roof were altered after the war, adding another storey above the synagogue. At present only the stone niche for the

Aron Kodesh A Torah ark (also known as the ''hekhal'', , or ''aron qodesh'', ) is an ornamental chamber in the synagogue that houses the Torah scrolls. History The ark is also known as the ''ark of law'', or in Hebrew the ''Aron Kodesh'' () or ''aron ha-Kod ...

and the wall-paintings uncovered early in the 21st century by art conservation remain. On the eastern wall there is the largest and at the same time the oldest Renaissance Aron HaKodesh in Poland, the framework probably coming from the end of the sixteenth century, and the capstone from the late eighteenth century. Above the rectangular frame is a grotesque ornament in the form of two griffins, which formerly held the crown and the Hebrew inscription of Keter Torah, which means the crown of the Torah. The cavity is bordered by channeled pillars with composite capitals. During the conservation works, in 1971-1972, painted heavy curtains were discovered on the sides of the pillars, which disappeared over time. The High Synagogue serves as a Landmark Conservation building. Since 2005 it has been open to visitors. Photographic and other exhibitions about customs and traditions of the Jewish community of the interwar period are staged indoors. The High Synagogue of Prague was modelled after the Krakow's High Synagogue.

Gallery

Krakow-Synagoga Wysoka wnetrze.jpg, Interior, historical exhibit High-Synagogue-(scripture).jpg, Ancient scripture under stucco after conservation

References

External links

*
Virtual tour at YouTube.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:High Synagogue (Krakow) 1563 establishments in the Holy Roman Empire 16th-century synagogues in Poland Ashkenazi Jewish culture in Poland Ashkenazi synagogues Former Orthodox synagogues in Poland Holocaust locations in Poland Jewish organizations established in 1563 Religious buildings and structures completed in 1563 Renaissance synagogues Synagogues in Kraków Synagogues preserved as museums 20th-century attacks on Jewish institutions Kraków in World War II Attacks on religious buildings and structures during World War II Attacks on Jewish institutions in Poland

Early history

World War II

Gallery

See also

References

External links