The Jewish Quarter in Prague

Just 300 metres away from the Prague old town square lies Josefov or the Jewish Quarter. It used to be the largest Jewish ghetto in Europe. Apart from its rich history, which for most of its part is gruesome, what is interesting to note is that Adolf Hitler had actually preserved the monuments around this Jewish settlement. The reason being, he wanted to establish “An exotic museum of an extinct race”.  The Nazis infact transferred other Jewish artifacts from other regions to Prague to add them to the museum. Today, the six synagogues, the ceremonial hall and the Old Jewish Cemetery which form a part of the Jewish Quarter, are testament to the life of Jews in Prague

The Synagogues

Each of the six synagogues is different architecturally and has a different story behind them. I had a chance to visit 4 of them and it was a very fulfilling experience.

Old-New Synagogue

Europe’s oldest active synagogue, the Old-New Synagogue was originally called the New Synagogue. It is when other synagogues were built in the area it came to be known as the Old-New Synagogue. Built in 1270 in gothic style, there are a couple of legends associated with this place. It is said that the stones of the building were brought by Angels from the King Solomon’s temple in Jerusalem and when the Messiah returns to rebuild the temple in Jerusalem, these stones shall be returned!

The other legend is that of the Golem. It is said that a Rabbi (Jewish religious leader) created a creature out of mud and brought it to life by placing some Hebrew inscriptions in its mouth to protect the Jews from the Christians. The Golem did serve its purpose but after a time its power grew so strong that the Rabbi had to make it lifeless and shut it in the attic of the Old-New Synagogue. It is believed that the Golem is still in the attic.

Pinkas Synagogue

This monument will move you to tears. Names of 77297 holocaust victims are painted on the walls of this synagogue. A lady pointed out to me that many had the same death date meaning they were probably killed together in gas chambers. The synagogue also has paintings made by children while they were in the Terezin concentration camp, just 30 miles north of Prague. Most of the children were transferred to Auschwitz where they met their end but their drawings survived.

Spanish Synagogue

I found this to be the most beautiful synagogue. It’s inspired by the Moorish (moors were the Arabs who ruled over present day Andalusia) architecture of Alhambra in Spain. It was built on the site of the then oldest synagogue in 1868. It houses some of the most beautiful artifacts of the Jewish Museum.

Klausen Synagogue

This baroque style synagogue is the best place to know about Judaism. The exhibits here tell us about the Jewish customs, traditions, festivals and rituals. The exhibits about the rituals for the dead are displayed at the ceremonial hall which is right next to the synagogue.

The Old Jewish Cemetery

Rated as one of the top 10 cemeteries to visit in the world by National Geographic, the Old Jewish Cemetery of Prague is one of its kind. The Jews were not allowed to be buried outside of the ghetto and their religion does not permit them to move dead bodies. Hence, 100000 bodies are buried under 12000 headstones with 12 bodies on top of each other in some places! The burial was prohibited in 1787 because of the risk of plague. Many notable Jews are buried at this cemetery. There are engravings on the headstones which depict the profession, characteristic or names of the person. For example, scissors depict the person was a tailor while a violin depicts a musician.

Tickets for the Jewish Museum and Jewish Quarter

All the synagogues except the Old-New Synagogue along-with the ceremonial hall and the Old Jewish Cemetery can be visited with a single ticket. All the above monuments are part of the Jewish Museum.  Tickets for the Old-New Synagogue need to be purchased separately. So if you purchase a ticket for the Jewish Museum you will be allowed in the ceremonial hall, cemetery and all the synagogues except the Old-New Synagogue. The price for the Jewish Museum ticket is CZK 350 and the price for the Old-New Synagogue is CZK 200 whereas a combined ticket cost CZK 500 ( 1 USD = 23 CZK). All the monuments are closed on Saturdays and Jewish Holidays.

Note: The Spanish Synagogue is closed for renovation till June 2020

Sincera Tip

• Start your tour at the Klausen Synagogue to familiarize yourself with the Jewish customs and traditions
• Incase you have time, visit the Terezin concentration camp which is only an hour away from Prague via a public bus.
• The nearest metro station to the Jewish Quarter is Staroměstská. You can also catch the tram (number 2, 17 or 18) to Staroměstská. The Jewish Quarter is 5 minute walking from both the metro as well as the tram stop.