"SYNAGOGUES OF SALONIKA: Community and Continuity" presents the fascinating history of this Jewish community by focusing on the 3 main synagogues that sustained organized Jewish life: Talmud Torah Hagadol (1520/40 - 1917), Beth Shaul (1898 - 1943) and Monastirlis (1927 - present). 

Under the Ottoman Turks, the Talmud Torah Hagadol helped to consolidate the loose collection of separate Jewish groupings into one community.  It burned to the ground in the fire of 1917 that destroyed the city center, 33 other synagogues,  and much of the old Jewish community. 

Beth Shaul, built in 1898, became the central synagogue and the venue of choice for important ceremonies such as the visit of King George II (1935).  Destroyed by the Germans in 1943, a highlight of the exhibition is a 3-D scale model of this synagogue. 

The Monastirlis Synagogue, established by Jews of Monastir (Bitolj) Yugoslavia, was erected in 1927 in the newly-designed city center.  Spared destruction during the German occupation owing to its having been used by the Red Cross, it was renovated after the war and today serves as the principal synagogue for the community. 

The exhibition’s maps and architectural drawings were prepared by Greek-born Israeli architect and scholar Dr. Elias V. Messinas, who has researched synagogue buildings throughout Greece.  An additional highlight is a bronze model, on loan from the Jewish community of Salonika, of the recently dedicated Holocaust sculpture.