It is a small jewel in the heart of Jerusalem.
Housed in what used to be
The German Catholic
Institution Near the Jaffa Gate, visitors will find
a treasure of Italian Jewish art, the Conegliano Veneto
Synagogue and The U. Nahon Museum of Italian Jewish Art.
In this small museum, the oldest surviving Torah
curtain, or
parochet, which dates to 1572, is on
display, among many other wonderful
exhibits.
Conegliano is a small village,
located between Padua and Venice, Italy. Apparently the
first Jewish family came to live in Conegliano in
1397-8, they were invited as moneylenders. By the
sixteenth century the Jewish community in the small
village thrived and in the seventeenth century a yeshiva
(Talmudic School) was established. By 1637 the local
Jewish population was required to stay within the
confines of the ghetto.
The Jews of
Congeliano built their new synagogue in 1701. It was in
use until World War I. Jewish soldiers of the
Austro-Hungarian army held the last service in the
synagogue during Yom Kippur, in 1917. In 1951, the
synagogue, which had been abandoned for decades, was
taken apart and sent to Israel, where in 1952 it found a
new home in the land of Zion. It was re-erected, in the
German Compound. The compound was also known as the
Schmidt Compound (after Wilhelm Schmidt – who for many
years headed the German Catholic Society in Palestine).
The Schmidt Compound was built in 1875 as a German
Catholic monastery intended to school young women of
Syrian-Christian descent. The building also served as a
hospice for pilgrims and was at the center of various
missionary and philanthropic activities. In the 1940’s
the monastery moved to a new location near the Old City.
For a time the Schmidt Compound was deserted. Later,
public offices and the Ma’ale School were located
here.
The Italian community was given
permission to hold weekly prayer services in the
compound, in the 1940’s. So by the time the dismantled
synagogue arrived in Israel in the early 1950’s the
former Catholic Compound seemed like a logical location
to erect the synagogue for the Italian Jewish
community.
The synagogue and museum are
located on the second floor of the former Catholic
compound. As you enter the building, before you turn
right to ascend the stairs, turn left. On the left hand
side of the corridor you will find a room with a
beautifully decorated, painted ceiling (see photo). The
hall, which used to serve as a dining room now provides
a place to hold concerts, lectures, etc (see the,
Web site for a current
listing of special events). The ceiling was apparently
painted in exchange for room and board, by a nineteenth
century traveler.
The Torah Ark in the very
small synagogue is ornately decorated in gold leaf. On
the walls there are stucco bas-relief carvings, which
bear inscriptions, by an unknown Italian poet. The
bas-reliefs in the synagogue of today are replicas of
the original inscriptions. The synagogue continues to
serve the local Italian community – to this day.
The museum is located just opposite the
synagogue and is comprised of four small exhibition
rooms, which are jam packed with the riches of Jewish
Italian heritage (as well as some items from neighboring
countries). The collection features doors of a Torah
Ark, a fifteenth century stone tablet (the oldest item
on display at the museum), brass and silver Hannukkiot
(Hannukkah lamps), chairs used by Torah readers,
beautiful textiles, Ketubot (marriage contracts). Torah
crowns, spice boxes and many other beautiful
items.
The Conegliano Veneto
Synagogue and The U. Nahon Museum of Italian Jewish Art
are located at 27, Hillel Street,
Jerusalem.
02-6241-610 TEL
02-6253-480
FAX
Email:
contact@jija.org Web site:The Conegliano Veneto Synagogue and
The U. Nahon Museum of Italian Jewish Art
Visiting Hours: Sunday, Tuesday and Wednesday: 9:00AM
–5:00 PM, Monday: 9:00 AM-2:00 PM, Thursday and Friday:
9:00 AM-1:00 PM. Saturday and Jewish Holidays,
closed.
Entry fees: Adults, 15 NIS/pp, Children, Students 10
NIS.
Groups who wish to attend services at the synagogue
should call in advance to coordinate.
Note: If you would like to have some coffee or a
light meal before or after your visit to the museum, try
the nearby Tmol Shilsom. It’s a place with atmosphere
that provides wholesome Kosher meals at reasonable
prices. As you walk out of the museum’s courtyard turn
left and continue walking down Hilel Street until you
reach Yoel Moshe Solomon Street, which will be on your
left. Across from # 6 take a left turn into a
little arched alley. As you enter the inner courtyard
turn left and walk all the way to the end until you see
a sign and a few steps on the left that will lead you to
the café’.
