Jewish Synagogue
Beth Shalom is a Jewish synagogue at Thissio area.
Modern and Contemporary era (1821 - )
1935 Constructed.
1970 Renovated.
Ottoman era (1453- 1821)
Byzantine era (331 AC- 1453)
Roman era (30 BC- 330 AC)
Hellenistic era (322- 31 BC)
Classical era (478-323 BC)
Archaic era (800-479 BC)
Geometric era (-1100- 800 BC)
Prehistory (-1100 BC)
What I can see
The Beth Shalom synagogue is the largest in the city and has been continuously operating until today. The building refers to neoclassicism and is covered with Pentelic marble. Opposite the Beth Shalom Synagogue is the oldest synagogue (1904) of “Etz Chaim”, or “Gianniotiki”, and operates only on major holidays, while the headquarters of the community is housed there.
What I can't see
The first Jews arrived in Athens in the 3rd century BC. In the Ottoman period and during the early years of the Greek kingdom, the Jewish community was small. Beth Shalom was constructed by the Sefaradites, namely the descendants of Jews who were expelled from Spain in the Middle Ages and had escaped to the Byzantine Empire. The synagogue was built to meet the needs of Jewish refugees of the Asia Minor Catastrophe. After the German invasion, many Jews of Athens fled to the mountains and fought alongside the guerrillas, greatly enhancing the national resistance. Many of those who remained were saved by Christians, who hid them in their homes, but most ended up in concentration camps.
Info
- Address: Melidoni St.
Bibliography
Jewish Museum of Greece, (d.u.), Οι εβραϊκές συναγωγές στην Αθήνα, [The Jewish synagogues in Athens],
http://www.jewishmuseum.gr/gr/information/jews_greece/jewish_sites/jewish_synagogues.html
Last visit: 15/9/2015
Mitropoulou K., (2004), Αθήνα, μνήμες και κτίρια, [Athens, memories and buildings], Sideris Publications
