Priene Synagogue

Last updated
Priene Synagogue
Priene synagoge.jpg
Plan of the Synagogue, 1904
Religion
Affiliation Judaism
StatusArchaeological site
Location
Location Priene, Turkey
Geographic coordinates 37°39′30.8″N27°17′44.4″E / 37.658556°N 27.295667°E / 37.658556; 27.295667
Architecture
Type Synagogue
Completed2nd century

The Priene Synagogue is an ancient synagogue discovered by archaeologists in Priene, Turkey.

The synagogue was discovered by archaeologists Theodor Wiegand and Hans Schrader in the western residential area in 1895–98. The synagogue dates to the 2nd century CE and was built into an older Hellenistic house. It consists of a main hall with two rows of columns forming a small basilica. Only one column was still in place. However, in the 1904 excavation report they mistakenly speculated that the structure was a house church. [1] In 1928 archaeologist Eleazar Sukenik identified the building as a synagogue, pointing to a niche for the Torah Ark. He also noted the carved menorah near the niche. It is known that hundreds of thousands of Jews lived in Asia Minor in the 1st century CE. Only two confirmed synagogues have been discovered: the Sardis Synagogue and this second one in Priene.

In the summer of 2009 archeologists Nadin Burkhardt from the University of Frankfurt am Main and Mark Wilson of the Asia Minor Research Center in Izmir began an exploration of the synagogue in a dig sponsored by the Biblical Archaeology Society. [2]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Priene</span> Ancient Greek city of Ionia

Priene was an ancient Greek city of Ionia located at the base of an escarpment of Mycale, about 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) north of what was then the course of the Maeander River. It was 67 kilometres (42 mi) from ancient Anthea, 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) from ancient Aneon and 25 kilometres (16 mi) from ancient Miletus. The city was built on the sea coast, overlooking the former Latmian Gulf of the Aegean. It was developed on steep slopes and terraces extending from sea level to a height of 380 metres (1,250 ft) above sea level at the top of the escarpment. Because of siltation from the river filling the bay over several centuries, the city is now an inland site. It is located at a short distance west of the modern village Güllübahçe Turun in the Söke district of Aydın Province, Turkey.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Capernaum</span> Village at Lake Tiberias in historical Judea, associated with Jesus

Capernaum was a fishing village established during the time of the Hasmoneans, located on the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee. It had a population of about 1,500 in the 1st century AD. Archaeological excavations have revealed two ancient synagogues built one over the other. A house turned into a church by the Byzantines is held by Christian tradition to have been the home of Saint Peter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Archaeology of Israel</span> Archaeological studies of Israel

The archaeology of Israel is the study of the archaeology of the present-day Israel, stretching from prehistory through three millennia of documented history. The ancient Land of Israel was a geographical bridge between the political and cultural centers of Mesopotamia and Egypt.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tel Rehov</span>

Tel Rehov or Tell es-Sarem, is an archaeological site in the Bet She'an Valley, a segment of the Jordan Valley, Israel, approximately 5 kilometres (3 mi) south of Beit She'an and 3 kilometres (2 mi) west of the Jordan River. It was occupied in the Bronze Age and Iron Age.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dura-Europos synagogue</span> Ancient synagogue in Syria

The Dura-Europos synagogue was an ancient synagogue uncovered at Dura-Europos, Syria, in 1932. The synagogue contains a forecourt and house of assembly with painted walls depicting people and animals, and a Torah shrine in the western wall facing Jerusalem. It was built backing on to the city wall, which was important in its survival. The last phase of construction was dated by an Aramaic inscription to 244 CE, making it one of the oldest synagogues in the world. It was unique among the many ancient synagogues that have emerged from archaeological excavations as the structure was preserved virtually intact, and it had extensive figurative wall-paintings, which came as a considerable surprise to scholars. These paintings are now displayed in the National Museum of Damascus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Magnesia on the Maeander</span> Ancient Greek city in Ionia, modern Turkey

Magnesia or Magnesia on the Maeander was an ancient Greek city in Ionia, considerable in size, at an important location commercially and strategically in the triangle of Priene, Ephesus and Tralles. The city was named Magnesia, after the Magnetes from Thessaly who settled the area along with some Cretans. It was later called "on the Meander" to distinguish it from the nearby Lydian city Magnesia ad Sipylum. It was earlier the site of Leucophrys mentioned by several ancient writers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Panionium</span>

The Panionium was an Ionian sanctuary dedicated to Poseidon Helikonios and the meeting place of the Ionian League. It was on the peninsula of Mt. Mycale, about 100 kilometres (62 mi) south of Smyrna—now İzmir, in Turkey. Herodotus describes it as follows:

The Panionion is a sacred ground in Mykale, facing north; it was set apart for Poseidon of Helicon by the joint will of the Ionians. Mykale is a western promontory of the mainland opposite Samos; the Ionians used to assemble there from their cities and keep the festival to which they gave the name of Panionia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Theodor Wiegand</span> German archaeologist (1864–1936)

Theodor Wiegand was one of the more famous German archaeologists.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carl Humann</span> German engineer, architect and archaeologist

Carl Humann was a German engineer, architect and archaeologist. He discovered the Pergamon Altar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sardis Synagogue</span> Former synagogue in Manisa Province, Turkey

The Sardis Synagogue is a synagogue located in Manisa Province, Turkey, the biggest one known from antiquity. Sardis was under numerous foreign rulers until its incorporation into the Roman Republic in 133 BCE. The city served then as the administrative center of the Roman province of Lydia. Sardis was reconstructed after the catastrophic 17 CE earthquake, and it enjoyed a long period of prosperity under Roman rule.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ehud Netzer</span> Israeli archaeologist

Ehud Netzer was an Israeli architect, archaeologist and educator, known for his extensive excavations at Herodium, where in 2007 he found the tomb of Herod the Great; and the discovery of a structure defined by Netzer as a synagogue, which if true would be the oldest one ever found.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Macestus Bridge</span> Bridge in Mysia

The Macestus Bridge or Bridge of Sultançayır was a Roman bridge across the Macestus River at Balıkesir, in the northwestern part of modern-day Turkey. Its flattened arches, slender piers and the hollow chamber system documented the progress made in late antique bridge building. A first cursory investigation of the 234 m long structure was conducted in the early 20th century, but since then its existence has been largely neglected by scholars. Current photos from 2009 show that the bridge has collapsed in the meantime.

The Synagogue in the Agora of Athens is an ancient synagogue located in the Ancient Agora of Athens.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chorazin</span> Village

Chorazin or Korazim was an ancient village in the Roman and Byzantine periods, best known from the Christian Gospels. It stood on the Korazim Plateau in the Upper Galilee on a hill above the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee, 2.5 mi (4.0 km) from Capernaum in what is now the territory of modern Israel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ancient synagogues in Palestine</span>

Ancient synagogues in Palestine refers to synagogues and their remains in the Land of Israel/Palestine region, built by the Jewish and Samaritan communities from the time of the Hasmonean dynasty during the Late Hellenistic period, to the Late Byzantine period.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A. Thomas Kraabel</span> American scholar and educator

Alf Thomas Kraabel was an American classics scholar and educator who worked extensively in Greek and Hellenistic Judaic studies. He served as a faculty member in the classics department at the University of Minnesota from 1963 to 1983, and served as the Dean of Luther College in Iowa before retiring in 2000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Huqoq</span>

Huqoq or Hukkok was an ancient Jewish village, located 12.5 km north of Tiberias. The area had been settled since ancient times and is mentioned in the Book of Joshua. The Palestinian village of Yaquq later stood at Huqoq's location, and a fort named Hukok was built near the site on 11 July 1945, later followed by a kibbutz.

Johann (Hans) Hermann Schrader was a German classical archaeologist and art historian.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Temple of Athena Polias (Priene)</span> Archaeological site

The Temple of Athena Polias in Priene was an Ionic Order temple located northwest of Priene’s agora, inside the sanctuary complex. It was dedicated to Athena Polias, also the patron deity of Athens. It was the main temple in Priene, although there was a temple of Zeus. Built around 350 BC, its construction was sponsored by Alexander the Great during his anabasis to the Persian Empire. Its ruins sit at the foot of an escarpment of mount Mycale. It was believed to have been constructed and designed by Pytheos, who was the architect of the great Mausoleum of Halikarnassos, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. It was one of the Hellenistic temples that was not reconstructed by Romans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ancient Jewish art</span> Art of the Jewish people during antiquity

Ancient Jewish art, is art created by Jews in both the Land of Israel and in the Diaspora prior to the Middle Ages. It features symbolic or figurative motifs often influenced by biblical themes, religious symbols, and the dominant cultures of the time, including Egyptian, Hellenistic, and Roman art.

References

  1. Hans Schrader/ Theodor Wiegand: Priene. Ergebnisse der Ausgrabungen und Untersuchungen in den Jahren 1895–1898. Berlin 1904, p. 480–481. (The excavation report online
  2. Wilson, Mark. "Letter from the Field: An Ancient Synagogue Comes to Light". Biblical Archaeology Review. Archived from the original on 15 December 2009. Retrieved 25 November 2009.; Nadin Burkhardt, Mark Wilson, "The Late Antique Synagogue in Priene: Its History, Architecture, and Context", Gephyra 10, 2013, pp.166-196

37°39′30.8″N27°17′44.4″E / 37.658556°N 27.295667°E / 37.658556; 27.295667