The remains of the destroyed Vilnius Great Synagogue and mikvah have been declared a state-protected cultural heritage site of national significance. The remains of the complex, which dates from the 17th century, have been revealed via archaeological excavations over the past decade.
“The valuable properties of this object are archaeological, architectural, historical, memorial and sacred,” the Lithuanian Culture Ministry said in an announcement issued Thursday. “[… ]The declaration of the remains of the Vilnius Great Synagogue and mikvah building complex as protected has been approved by the State Commission for Cultural Heritage.”
It added, “Declaring cultural heritage objects as protected by the state opens up wider opportunities to receive part of the state budget funding for their preservation and management.”
The Great Synagogue was built in the early 1600s in Renaissance-Baroque style. It became the center of Jewish life in Vilnius (Vilna), towering over the Shulhoyf, a teeming complex of alleyways and other Jewish community buildings and institutions including 12 synagogues, ritual baths, the community council, kosher meat stalls, the Strashun library, and other structures and institutions.
It was ransacked and torched by the Nazis in World War II; in 1955-57 the postwar Soviet regime tore down the ruins and in 1964 built a nursery school on the site.
There have been ongoing discussions for years on what to do with the site and how to commemorate the building.
The archaeology of the site began in 2011 with a preliminary excavation, followed by a Ground Penetrating Radar Survey in 2015 and full excavation seasons starting in 2016. The project is partnered and sponsored by a variety of Lithuanian, Israeli, and American institutions.
The excavations made remarkable discoveries — important parts of the bimah, the foundations of two columns, the location of two mikvaot, the outer rear wall, and part of the Synagogue floor. Also found were engraved inscriptions and various artefacts.
“In 2020, the Government handed over the remains of the Great Synagogue and mikvah to the Goodwill Foundation,” Thursday’s announcement said. “Currently, the Jewish community of Vilnius is developing concepts for the revival of the synagogue with the state institutions.”
Last year, the Vilnius Municipality signed a memorandum of understanding with the Vilnius Jewish community and the Goodwill Foundation that will lead to development of the site as a space of commemoration, education, and Jewish communal life.
In addition the the remains of the Great Synagogue, the Culture Ministry also declared as a protected heritage site the building complex that housed the first Vilnius Lithuanian High School. The YIVO Institute of Jewish Research was founded in one of the apartments of this complex in 1925.
Read the full announcement from the Culture Ministry
Access the web site on the archaeology at the site of the Great Synagogue complex
See some of our posts about the Vilnius Great Synagogue and the archaeology there