Synagoga v Spišskom Podhradí / Synagogue in Spišské Podhradie (North-East Slovakia) - Synagogues on Waymarking.com

Neo-Moorish Synagogue in Spišské Podhradie, a withess of jewish history of the town, serves nowadays as a small cultural center.

Spišské Podhradie once had a mixed population of Slovaks, Germans and Jews. Jews settled here only after a ban on their residence was lifted in 1840. The town became a rabbinical center, and its Jewish population grew from 219 in 1869 to 458 in 1940. The community, which adhered to the Orthodox stream, maintained a yeshiva and other institutions. Nowadays, after WWII holocaust, no Jews live here. Only the synagogue in town center and the neglected Jewish cemetery, about 3 kmoutside of town to the north, bear witness to the Jewish past. The synagogue has been undergoing a fitful restoration process for years. The building is already used for cultural purposes. The simple building was constructed around 1875 and restored after a fire in 1905-1906. It is a typical example of 19th century provincial synagogue architecture, with its eastern façade oriented to the street and accentuated by four polygonal pillars with massive stone balls. The interior has been relatively well preserved; the women’s gallery is supported by cast iron columns, and the original ark (aron hakodesh) is still in place. The splendid decorations are currently being restored.