Archeologists have confirmed that the structure beneath an abandoned building in Utrera, southwest Spain, that had long been used as a restaurant and pub (and before that a hospital and church) were the remains of a medieval synagogue complex.
The official announcement of the rare find was made Tuesday, in a news conference held at the site by Utrera Mayor José María Villalobos and Miguel Ángel de Dios, chief archaeologist for the project.
They said the archaeological research had determined, among other things, the remains of the ark and perimeter bench in what had been the prayer hall. The state of conservation of the synagogue, they said, “being partial, is nevertheless exceptional.”
Only a handful of confirmed sites of medieval synagogues are known in Spain. A trend has seen Spanish cities seeking to rediscover their medieval Jewish heritage, both to broaden an understanding of local history and to attract tourists.
Watch the entire news conference on local media:
As we wrote in April 2021, Utrera municipal authorities had combed through documents and archival materials since 2015 to try to determine the possible location of the city’s medieval synagogue. This research led it to conclude that the remains of the synagogue could be hidden under an abandoned building in the city center that had been used, until two decades ago, as a restaurant and pub.
The city purchased the abandoned building in 2018 and performed preliminary surveys on the site. These indicated that the remains of the Misericordia Hospital that occupied the space from 1492, following the expulsion of Jews from Spain, lie under the building, and beneath that there could be the remains of the synagogue itself.
In 1604, a priest and historian Rodrigo Caro had written that the old hospital had been built on the remains of a synagogue.
Archaeological work on site began in November 2021. At the news conference, Villalobos and Ángel de Dios said further archaeology would be carried out to try to determine the extent of the synagogue complex beyond the sanctuary and confirm, for example, the location of the women’s section and mikvah.
They said that even while archaeology is being carried out, the site will be made accessible to visitors.
Watch a video tour of the site and explanation (in Spanish) by Miguel Ángel de Dios.
In 2021, Utrera’s cultural officer María del Carmen Cabra Carmona told JHE that he possibility of finding a synagogue there, represented “an inestimable value under many points of view.”
On the one hand, [we want] to rescue a very important part of our history, the history of our city and its people, of a part of our population and of our families who were repudiated and expelled, and who will now have the opportunity to know and value their origins. It’s time to reunite.
But also, she added, “At the heritage level, [the possible discovery of a synagogue] has a magnificent potential, that would enrich our city and bring a less frequent kind of tourism.”
Read a report about the discovery (in Spanish)