Archaeological excavations have taken place in the downtown Jewish quarter of L’viv on the site of two destroyed synagogue adjacent to the ruins of the Golden Rose synagogue.
According to a news release, the works began on Sept. 26 on Arsenal Square and the adjacent area on Staroevreiska Street and were to last til the end of the month. The excavations were carried out as part of preliminary steps to implement the “Synagogue Square” memorial site, one of three planned memorials on sites of Jewish history in L’viv. Co-organizers of the project are the City of Lviv, the Center for Urban History of East Central Europe, and the Ukrainian-German project, “Municipal Development and Rehabilitation of the Old City of Lviv,” under the aegis of the German Society for International Cooperation (GiZ) GmbH.
According to the release:
Identification of the precise layout of the foundations and information-gathering on the buildings of the Great Synagogue and Beth Hamidrash, both destroyed during World War II, constitutes the first step in the project of reconstructing Synagogue Square. The Office of Historical Environment Preservation of the Lviv City Council has ordered the work, and it will be completed by the Rescue Archeological Service of the Institute of Archaeology of the Academy of Sciences of Ukraine. The dig will proceed under the leadership of Oleh Osalchuk and Iurii Lukovskyi.
This archaeological research is part of the project of reconstructing Synagogue Square, which is one of the attempts to honor the memory of Lviv’s Jewish community and draw attention to the city’s multi-ethnic past, the importance of preserving its multi-cultural heritage, and promote awareness of the history of the Jewish community of Lviv.
The Synagogue Square project was designed by the Berlin-based architect Franz Reshke. In December 2010 his concept was chosen from 35 entries by an international jury at an open international competition. JHE Coordinator Ruth Ellen Gruber was part of the Jury. The winning project, as well as the other projects, can be viewed online at http://www.design-competitions.lviv.ua/
Reshke modified his design following a visit to L’viv in October 2011.
The project envisages that the territory of the Golden Rose synagogue should remain as it is, and only be strengthened and preserved; the territory of the Beth Hamidrash should remain a green zone open for further development; and the area of the Great Synagogue should become a memorial square honoring the memory of the synagogue and its destruction, and also provide an open space for the public.
5 comments on “Excavations in L’viv at site of destroyed synagogues”
My paternal family lived next to the Golden Rose Synagogue in the beginning of the 20th century.
This is very exciting!
This is a very big and meaningful step towards remembrance and as my mother’s roots are there, a sole survivor of her family, this is especially dear to me.
Thank you all who are doing this sacred work.
Very interesting , I would be interested to receive information of further development of this program . Thanks Lili Thau
Let us all hope and pray that we will soon see the restoration of the Golden Rose Synagogue, such an important part of the historical fabric of the city of Lvov and the culture of all Ukrainians whether Jewish or not.
May G-d bless you all.
One more step in keeping the memory of the Past in Lviv. Hope the project would be good in realization.