Great Synagogue (Grodno)

Great Synagogue of Grodno
Great Synagogue of Grodno
Belarusian: Харальная сінагога, Горадня
	The synagogue, in 2019
Religion
Affiliation	Orthodox Judaism
Rite	Hasidic Judaism
Ecclesiastical or organisational status	Synagogue
Status	Active
Location
Location	Vialikaja Trajeckaja Street 59a, Grodno 230023
Country	Belarus
	Location in Belarus
Geographic coordinates	53°40′43″N 23°49′29″E / 53.6786°N 23.8246°E
Architecture
Architect(s)	Iya Frunkin
Type	Synagogue architecture
Style	Gothic Revival; Moorish Revival;
Date established	1576 (as a congregation)
Completed	1905
Website
	jewishgrodno.com

The Great Synagogue of Grodno (Belarusian: Харальная сінагога, Горадня, Russian: Большая Хоральная синагога, Гродно), also known as the New Synagogue or the Choral Synagogue, is an Orthodox Hasidic Jewish synagogue, located on Vialikaja Trajeckaja Street, in Grodno (or Hrodna), Belarus. The building dates from the 16th century and was nominated for UNESCO World Heritage listing in 2007.^[1]^[2]^[3]

History

The Great Synagogue of Grodno was built from 1576 to 1580 by Santi Gucci, who designed a wooden synagogue at Rabbi Mordechai Yoffe's invitation. However, this building burnt down in 1617.^[4]

The second synagogue was also burnt down in 1899.^[4] The Jewish community built another synagogue in the eclectic and Moorish style from 1902 to 1905.^[5] By 1907, the city boasted a state Jewish school, a girls' school, a craft shelter, a Talmud-Yeshiva, 107 Jewish primary schools, and 5 elementary schools for girls. There were also two Jewish libraries and several Jewish charitable organizations working in the city.^[6]

Jews played a very significant role in city life as industrialists, merchants, craftsmen, owners of printing houses, doctors, and teachers. There was said to be a special "Grodno Aura," created by its cultured and intelligent population. For this reason Grodno was considered to be one of the Jewish intellectual capitals of Europe.^[6]

The interior of the synagogue was vandalized in 1941 by Nazis. Soviet authorities closed the synagogue in 1944. The synagogue was returned to the Jewish community in 1991; and was subsequently restored^[4]^[7] under the direction of Rabbi Yitzchok Kofman. However, in 2013, the synagogue was again destroyed by fire.^[5]^[8] The synagogue has since been restored and is in use.