Synagogue (Bechhofen, Germany)

Eliezer Zusman of Brody

1684

The Bechhofen Synagogue (built in 1685) is believed to have been the largest wooden synagogue in Germany. The interior of the synagogue was painted with lavish decorations in 1732 and 1733, in typical East European style, which the artist Eliezer Zusman, originally from the town of Brody, is credited with introducing to southern Germany. This photograph was taken before the synagogue was burned down on Kristallnacht, November 9 and 10, 1938.

Credits

  1. Painted Interior. © Central Archives for the History of the Jewish People (CAHJP).
  2. Exterior. © United States Holocaust Memorial Museum,courtesy of Steven Frank.

Published in: The Posen Library of Jewish Culture and Civilization, vol. 5.

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Creator Bio

Eliezer Zusman of Brody

18th Century

Eliezer Zusman of Brody (alternatively, Elieser Sussman) was a Jewish painter credited with introducing the traditional East European type of synagogue decoration to southern Germany in the early eighteenth century. His signature style is found in several synagogues in Bavaria. Zusman may have been invited to southern Germany as a professional craftsman or might have gone there seeking a better life and refuge from instability in Poland. He painted his first synagogue, Bechhofen, in 1732. 

Related Guide

Synagogue Architecture, 1750–1880

Synagogues built in Europe in the age of Emancipation had somewhat contradictory goals. On the one hand, they were to articulate a proud Jewishness, which by definition meant a distinctive style. On the other hand, they wanted to announce that they were deeply embedded in the European cityscape.

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