The Central Synagogue of Aleppo

This was the main house of prayer of the Jewish community of Aleppo, and the Aleppo Codex — one of the oldest near-complete manuscripts of the Hebrew Bible — was kept here for 500 years. The western wing is the oldest part of the building, dated to the fifth or sixth century. The oldest surviving inscription is from 834.

The building’s story

During the Mongol invasion of 1260 it was one of six places in the city declared safe. It was destroyed in Tamerlane’s invasion of 1400; rebuilding began in 1405 and finished in 1418, on a deliberately smaller scale so as not to draw attention. After 1516, under Ottoman rule, an eastern wing was added for the Sephardi community arriving from Spain. A thorough renovation followed in 1855.

What was inside

Three parts: a covered prayer hall to the west, a courtyard in the middle, and an eastern wing enlarged in the nineteenth century. There was a tevah in each part and seven arks across the complex. Rows of columns divided the western hall into three aisles, and its west wall held seven windows, each of a different design. The courtyard served as an open-air sanctuary in good weather. At its centre stood an outdoor tevah on four columns under a dome. On the west wall was the ark from which the shofar was sounded, and the Summer Ark stood against the south wall. The codex was kept in the enclosed Cave of Elijah at the southern end of the eastern wing.

Its condition today

It was looted and burned in 1947, and the codex was taken out of the country to Israel soon after. The ruin stood until 1992, when Aleppo-born Jews in New York funded its repair. With no community left it never reopened for worship and passed to the state. It was damaged again during the war; restoration begun in 2016 was set back by the earthquakes of 2023 and continues.

Can you visit

No. The building is closed and only its outer walls and doorway can be seen from the lane. If you are walking the old city it lies on the Bahsita side, south of Bab al-Faraj — worth knowing as a location rather than a stop.