This is a photograph of the ruins of the synagogue in Sardis, Turkey. The synagogue was discovered during excavations conducted in 1962. Sardis was the capital city of the Kingdom of Lydia in the seventh century BCE and is believed to have had a Jewish community as early as the third century BCE. Fragments of mosaic floors and replicas of the table, flanked by two statues of lions, can be seen in the photograph. The synagogue was located in the middle of the city and was part of a complex that included a gymnasium, stores, and a bathhouse. The synagogue was exceptionally large and could accommodate 1,000 people. It was built in the style of a Roman basilica with a long, rectangular hall lined with columns on both sides. Inscriptions in Hebrew and Greek were found on the site. The lions that stood next to the table were common in the art of Lydia but were also Jewish symbols representing both Jerusalem and the tribe of Judah. The mosaics on the floor were designed with geometrical floral and animal patterns. The synagogue was destroyed in 616 CE when the city was conquered by the Persians. It was never rebuilt and there was never a Jewish community in Sardis again.
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The Center for Jewish Art – The Center for Jewish Art documents Jewish art from all over the world. The art is divided into five categories: illuminated Hebrew manuscripts, sacred and ritual objects, ancient Jewish art, modern Jewish art, and Jewish ritual architecture. While documenting Jewish life in communities around the world, the Center has paid special attention to the remnants left in the wake of World War II and the Communist regimes in Europe. Many synagogues and other communal buildings are in a grave state of disrepair, and the Center is trying to document them through photography before they are lost forever. The Center for Jewish Art also collects archives, manuscripts, and ritual items that are dispersed around the world. The Center then digitises the material and uploads it to the National Library’s website in order to make it accessible to scholars and members of the general public who are interested in learning about their ancestry.
