Synagogue de Gundershoffen, Jewish synagogue in Gundershoffen, France
The Synagogue of Gundershoffen is a sandstone building with a double-pitched tile roof and oriental design elements, standing in the town center. The complex also included a ritual bath and a school building that together formed the physical and social infrastructure of the former Jewish community.
Built in 1865 to replace an earlier structure from 1780, this building served its original purpose for over half a century. By the 1930s, the local Jewish population had largely departed due to political tensions, marking a significant change in the building's role.
This place was once a community center for the local Jewish population, housing spaces for education, ritual bathing, and mutual aid activities. Such buildings served as social hubs where people gathered not only for worship but also to maintain connections and support one another.
The building stands on Rue de la Paix and blends into the town's streetscape, though it is not open to the public as a tourist site. You can view the exterior and adjacent cemetery from outside to understand this historical Jewish location's physical presence.
The cemetery beside the building holds hundreds of graves spanning two centuries, preserving records of the Jewish presence in the region. These tombs tell the story of a once-thriving community before its dispersal.
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