This is a photograph of the inside of the Old Synagogue in Krakow, Poland. The synagogue has a vaulted ceiling, and the bimah is topped with a structure that is similar to an ironwork gazebo. In the background is a menorah standing on a pedestal. Several large chandeliers are hanging from the ceiling. The ark can also be seen on the back wall.
The Old Synagogue is located in the Kazimierz district of Krakow and is the oldest synagogue still standing in Poland. The synagogue was originally built in the fifteenth century and rebuilt in 1570 and was thought of as one of the most important synagogues in Poland. In 1794, General Tadeusz Kościuszko, a war hero who fought for Polish independence, spoke in the synagogue in an effort to convince the Jewish community to support his cause. He said: “The Jews proved to the world that whenever humanity can gain, they would not spare themselves.” The quote is written on a plaque in the synagogue.
During World War II, the Old Synagogue was captured and looted by the German Army who used it as an ammunition storehouse. Artwork and religious items were stolen. The synagogue remained in disrepair until a renovation took place between 1956 and 1959. It is now used as a branch of the Historical Museum of Krakow which specializes in Jewish life in Krakow.
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Jewish Community of Krakow – Krakow is the second largest city in Poland and was one of the important Jewish centers in Eastern Europe before the Holocaust. Jews began living in Krakow in the fourteenth century and established themselves in the Kaimierz on the outskirts of the town, where they built a mikveh (ritual bathhouse) and a cemetery. Despite frequent conflicts with their non-Jewish neighbours, the Jewish population grew, and by the middle of the 1800s, Jews were allowed to settle in the city of Krakow itself. At this time, secular, assimilated Jews became the leaders of the community, although religious Jews also lived in the city. By 1900, over 25,000 Jews were living in Krakow, growing to 60,000 by the onset of World War II. The Germans occupied Krakow in 1939 and a ghetto was established in 1941. The ghetto was liquidated between June 1942 and March 1943, and the Jews were sent to the death camps at Auschwitz and Belzec and the slave labour camp Plazow. As depicted in the famous film Schindler's List, the German businessman Oskar Schindler saved over 1,000 Jews in his factory that was situated in Krakow. After the war, 2,000 Jews returned to Krakow. Today, approximately 1,000 Jews live in Krakow, although only about 200 are affiliated with the organized Jewish community. Of the many synagogues that were in Krakow, only seven survived the war. Three are still active, include the famous Rema Synagogue. The community also has a Jewish community centre and a Jewish kindergarten. Krakow has hosted a popular annual Jewish festival since 1990.
Jewish Community of Poland – Jews have been living in Poland for over 1000 years at the invitation of the Polish rulers who recognised the value of their particular skills. Jews fleeing persecution in other countries found relative security in Poland, and by the middle of the 1500s, eighty percent of all Jews lived there. For the next 200 years, Jews enjoyed a certain amount of autonomy in Poland and the community flourished, becoming very influential and a centre of Talmudic learning. Yeshivot were established by the prominent rabbis of the period, and mysticism and, later on, Hassidism, had a great influence on Polish Jews. Following the Polish partition of 1795, the Jews came under the rule of Russia, Austria-Hungary, and Prussia, and many were subject to anti-Semitism, pogroms, and poverty. Despite this persecution, Poland remained an important centre of both Jewish religious learning and the new Jewish Haskalah (Enlightment) movement. Poland was the birthplace of many influential Jews in politics, law, science, literature, and economics. Many of the leading Zionist leaders first joined the Zionist movement in Poland. Jewish culture, including Yiddish literature and theatre, also thrived here in the nineteenth and twentieth century. The end of the nineteenth century saw the emigration of many Polish Jews to the United States and Palestine due to the repressive Czarist Russian rule. By the onset of World War II, over three million Jews were living in Poland; by the end of the war, about eighty-five percent of the community had been murdered. Poland was home to many of the most notorious ghettos, concentration camps, and extermination camps, where the Holocaust was carried out by the Nazis and their supporters. Poland also saw Jewish uprisings against the Nazi occupation, and many non-Jewish Poles endangered their lives protecting Jews. After the Holocaust, most Jewish survivors did not return to Poland but emigrated to other countries. Of those who did return to their homes, many found their property confiscated and some were even victims of pogroms. Under the post-war communist rule the small Jewish community remaining in Poland faced additional hardship. However, after the fall of the communist regime, the community underwent a Jewish cultural, social, and religious revival. Jewish community centres and synagogues were built, universities started offering courses in Jewish studies, and the POLIN Jewish museum, one of the largest in the word, was opened in 2013. Many Jews from all over the world visit Poland to learn about the history of the Polish Jewish community and about the Holocaust. According to estimates by the Joint and the Jewish Agency, there are between 25,000 and 100,000 Jews currently living in Poland, including the many Poles who have discovered Jewish roots in recent years.
Synagogue Design – The design of synagogues is influenced by the place, time, and community that built it. All synagogues face toward Jerusalem and include certain features such as the ark (aron hakodesh) where the Torah scrolls are kept, a curtain (parochet) in front of the ark, a prayer platform (bimah) from which the services are led , and a lamp that is kept constantly lit (ner tamid). In Orthodox synagogues men and women sit separately, while in Reform and Conservative synagogues families sit together. In many Sephardi synagogues the congregation sits around the bimah, while in Ashkenazi synagogues the congregation sit in rows facing the ark. Karaite synagogues differ from the more common synagogues and do not have any seats. While some synagogues are very simple in style, others are very ornate and include stained glass windows, intricate designs on the walls, and candelabras. There are very few traditional guidelines for synagogues except that they should include windows and be the tallest building in the area. In many places, however, Jews were not allowed to build tall buildings, and some synagogues were even built below ground level. For these reasons, synagogues were often built hidden within existing buildings or protected by a high wall. The emancipation of the Jews in nineteenth-century Western Europe impacted the architecture of synagogues, and large, elaborate synagogues were built, often in central locations.
