The remains of what is thought to be a large 14th century synagogue complex, including a mikvah, have been discovered during research linked to the renovation of the building that today houses the Historical Institute of Wrocław University.
In an article on its web site, the city of Wrocław called the discovery in the building’s basement “sensational.” Researchers said that it could represent one of the largest medieval synagogue complexes known in Europe.
“In the context of the knowledge about medieval synagogues in Europe we can suggest that we are dealing with the remains of a synagogue of the first Jewish community in Wrocław,” wrote researchers Prof. Małgorzata Chorowska, Prof. Mateusz Goliński, and architect Mariusz Caban in an article published in the Journal of Heritage Conservation.
In an article on its web site, the University said that during the renovation work, which began in 2021, “large expanses of 14th-century walls began to emerge from under the plasterwork. The exposed structure began to resemble the layouts of medieval European synagogues.”
It quoted Chorowska, from the Wrocław University of Science and Technology, as saying that “it was precisely the fact that instead of the expected bourgeois tenement houses we had a synagogue, and above all its size, that was quite a surprise.”
On the basis of previous historical-architectural research carried out under Chorowska’s direction, the University’s article said, “it is therefore highly probable that the remains of a 14th-century synagogue built into the walls of a later town palace have just been discovered.”
The University announcement said the probable location of the mikvah “was revealed by a walled entrance originally leading inside from the courtyard.”
Lead archaeologist Dr. Pawel Duma was quoted on the City’s web site as saying that the researchers “came across relics of an L-shaped wall enclosing the south-west corner of the middle building. This is where water accumulates, so there may have been a wooden tank here. Unfortunately, the remaining part of the wall was badly damaged, so I can’t say 100 percent that it was a mikveh, but I can’t rule it out either. We were unable to provide an alternative interpretation of the function of the discovered relics.”
Archaeological research aimed at determining the location of the mikvah was financed by the Bente Kahan Foundation (FBK), long engaged in Jewish heritage work in Wroclaw, as an extension of its broader project called History Reclaimed — a permanent exhibit exploring the more than 800 years of Jewish history in and around the city, known for much of its history as the German Breslau, from medieval times to the present. The exhibit opened in 2010, coinciding with the inauguration of the restored White Stork Synagogue, built in 1829, whose restoration was spearheaded by the foundation.
“Reclaiming this history will change the DNA of our city and linking it to the oldest [Jewish] gravestone in Poland found in our city (from 1203),” the FBK’s director Bente Kahan told JHE. “The basement belongs to the first settlement in the city, when the city was developed […] This discovery manifests the importance of the Jewish settlement from early time in the development of the city.”
Click here to see the announcement article on the University web site
Click here to see the article on the city of Wroclaw’s web site