Prethodno priopćenje
Notes on Osijek lower town sinagogue
Zlatko Karač
Sažetak
Among more than 80 sinagogues that existed in Croatia
in the course of the history only nine emerged in the
final level of construction in the first decades of the 20th
century. A special position among these is occupied by Osijek
Lower Town sinagogue, one of the rare Jewish house
of prayer that was preserved in its almost original form,
although with different function.
In ancient Mursa there was already a Jewish proseuche
(in the 2nd and 3rd centuries). The first settled Jews
in Osijek were registered in 1746 in the area of the Lower
Town. Modern Jewish municipality (besides the one in Zagreb
– the most numerous one) in Osijek in its Upper Town
was founded in 1849; the first house of prayer was established
in a house in 399 Školska street, later 393 Nemecka
street (nowadays Pejačevićeva street); the big Upper Town
sinagogue with two towers was built in 1869 in Županijska
street (devastated and burnt in 1941, pulled down again in
1950).
A bit younger Jewish municipality in the Lower Town
was established in 1862; the site of its first sinagogue is not
known. The construction plans for the new Lower Town
Templ done by W.C. Hofbauer dated back to April 1901,
and for a bit modified main plan in 1902 building permit
was issued on 16 July 1902. Solemn opening of the sinagogue
after less than five months of construction took place
on 28 December 1902, although final works continued in
1903 as well.
The high-rise sinagogue was situated at street-line without
retracting into the depth of the building lot (modern
plan that ignored prescriptive royal regulations on houses
of prayer of «non-coreligionists»); the entrance; around the
sinagogue originally there was a garden with a wrought
iron fence. The main facade composition was symmetrical;
central risalit is pointed out and raised, flanked with a
pair of towers with «Moorish» imperial roof in which there
are side entrances and a spiral stairway leading to women
gallery (esrat naschim). The facade painting was performed
in a two-coloured dissection: light coloured plastic, dark
fondo (significant renovation of the facade took place in
1930, then in 1980 and in the late 1990ies). Neo-Romanesque
details (lesenes, arches, decorative supporting piers,
bifore, portal) were used in facade shaping. There are still
Judaic symbols in it such as a luhot with Ten Commandments
at the top of the gable, the rosette on the side facades
carry the motif of magen David (Star of David) that was
also applied on the tops of the spires.
In the interior aron ha-kodesh for storing Tora, placed
in a deep barrel-shaped arched eastern apse (a polygonal
lay-out niche), there is a raised wrought iron fenced
reader’s platform bima for the rabi. Artificial wooden vault
hangs over the nave, a gallery of the choir is over the entrance
where in 1928 there was an organ. The walls and vault
are decorated using patterns of folk motifs of coloured
floral matrix (Hungarian influence); picturesquely formed
pillars of female gallery are made of cast iron.
According to the time of construction this is one of
the last late-historicist sinagogues of modest quality and
conventional concept but interesting among the same sinagogues
of this type (Westwerk sinagogue with a pair of
western towers and gallery motif) and for the fact that it is
one of the rare sinagogues that survived pulling down and
severe devastation.
Preserving the original forms the interior of the sinagogue
was in art-conservation terms correctly redone in 1980
after it had been sold to the Pentecostal church in 1976. It
is today a part of the Evangelical Theological Faculty in 32
Cvjetkova street in the Lower Town. The memorial tablet
has been put up.
Ključne riječi
Hrčak ID:
95613
URI
Datum izdavanja:
20.5.2010.
Posjeta: 2.497 *