Published: 5 February 2018
Last updated: 4 March 2024
But now the Old Synagogue in Merthyr Tydfil, built in the 1870s, could be reborn. It is part of an extraordinary scheme – to be launched this week by the historian Simon Schama – to map more than 3,300 historic synagogues across 48 European countries and restore the most significant sites.
The synagogue in Merthyr Tydfil (pictured) was the centre of a community of around 400 Jews, many from eastern Europe. Its members ran a button factory, a chocolate business, a betting shop, property companies and other local enterprises. The annual Jewish Ball was attended by many of the town’s citizens, Jews and non-Jews.
But by the 1980s, a minyan – a quorum of 10 men – could no longer be reached, and the synagogue was sold. The grade II-listed building became a Christian centre and later a gym; today it lies empty and vandalised.
Now, however, there is hope that it will be preserved and restored as a Jewish museum, part of the scheme being rolled out this week.
FULL STORY Plan to save Europe’s synagogues receives high-profile backing (Guardian)