Dohány Street Synagogue
| Dohány Street Synagogue | |
|---|---|
The synagogue from Dohány Street in 2005 | |
| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Neolog Judaism |
| Rite | Nusach Ashkenaz |
| Ecclesiastical or organisational status | Synagogue |
| Status | Active |
| Location | |
| Location | Dohány Street, Erzsébetváros (VIIth district), Budapest |
| Country | Hungary |
Location of the synagogue in Budapest | |
| Geographic coordinates | 47°29′45″N 19°03′39″E / 47.49583°N 19.06083°E |
| Architecture | |
| Architect(s) |
|
| Type | Synagogue architecture |
| Style | |
| Groundbreaking | 1854 |
| Completed | 1859 |
| Specifications | |
| Direction of façade | South-west by south |
| Capacity | 2,964 seats |
| Length | 75 m (246 ft) |
| Width | 27 m (89 ft) |
| Width (nave) | 12 m (39 ft) |
| Height (max) | 43.6 m (143 ft) |
| Dome(s) | Two |
| Materials | Brick |
| Website | |
| dohany-zsinagoga | |
The Dohány Street Synagogue ([ˈdoɦaːɲ] DOE-hawng; Hungarian: Dohány utcai zsinagóga; Hebrew: בית הכנסת הגדול של בודפשט, romanized: Bet ha-Knesset ha-Gadol shel Budapesht), also known as the Great Synagogue (Hungarian: Nagy zsinagóga) or Tabakgasse Synagogue (Yiddish: Tabak-Shul), is a Neolog Jewish congregation and synagogue, located on Dohány Street in Erzsébetváros (VIIth district) of Budapest, Hungary. It is the largest synagogue in Europe, seating 3,000 people, and is a centre of Neolog Judaism. The congregation worships in the Ashkenazi rite.
The synagogue was built between 1854 and 1859 in the Moorish Revival and Romantic Historicist styles, with the decoration based chiefly on Islamic models from North Africa and medieval Spain (the Alhambra). The synagogue's Viennese architect, Ludwig Förster, believed that no distinctively Jewish architecture could be identified, and thus chose "architectural forms that have been used by oriental ethnic groups that are related to the Israelite people, and in particular the Arabs". The interior design is partly by Frigyes Feszl.
The Dohány Street Synagogue complex consists of the Great Synagogue, the Heroes' Temple, a graveyard, a memorial, and a Jewish museum, the latter built on the site where Theodor Herzl's house of birth stood. Dohány Street itself, a leafy street in the city center, carries strong Holocaust connotations as it constituted the border of the Budapest Ghetto.