House of Science and Technics, Cultural center and former synagogue in Kecskemét, Hungary.
The House of Science and Technics in Kecskemét is a rectangular building with sloped roofs and a distinctive octagonal tower crowned by a lotus bud-shaped dome. It stands at the corner of Szabadság Square and Rákóczi Street, displaying a blend of Jewish architectural heritage and contemporary design elements.
The neolog Jewish community, over a thousand strong by the 1860s, built the synagogue between 1864 and 1868 to plans by János Zitterbarth, completing the interior in 1871. The July 1911 earthquake tilted the onion dome, which Lipót Baumhorn replaced with a lotus-bud spire. After the Holocaust the building stood unused; the city bought it in 1966 and rebuilt the interior by 1974 as the House of Science and Technics.
This building served as a gathering place for Kecskemét's Jewish community for many decades. Today visitors walk through spaces where scientific talks and exhibitions take the place of religious services.
The center is located in a central square in Kecskemét and is easily reached on foot. Visitors should expect regular opening hours and can participate in exhibitions, lectures, or concerts depending on the current program.
The building still carries visible signs of its past, with design elements that recall its time as a place of worship. Its conversion into a modern science center was a rare choice that gave the location an entirely new purpose while preserving traces of its religious identity.
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