The Menarsha Synagogue in the Jewish Quarter of Damascus

In the Jewish quarter, on the east side of al-Mansha Street where it branches north from Tallat al-Hijara Street, directly opposite the north end of the Farhi-Muallim mansion, stands a synagogue. Damascus calls it the Menarsha Synagogue, and the name Great Synagogue of Damascus points at the same building. It has not served as a synagogue since 1949.

Getting there

The quarter is south of Straight Street. Find Tallat al-Hijara Street and turn north into al-Mansha Street; the synagogue is on the east side, and the north end of the mansion opposite is a good marker. The Elfrange Synagogue is ninety metres south, so the two are stops on the same walk.

What to see

The building went up in the second half of the 19th century. The plan is rectangular, the hall has three aisles, and the arches rest on round white columns. It is the same scheme and the same period as the Elfrange Synagogue nearby. Part of the structure was destroyed and never rebuilt, so what stands today is not a complete hall.

5 August 1949

That day the synagogue was full for the Sabbath service when a bomb was set off inside it. 12 people died, most of them children. A memorial plaque for those 12 stands in the hall, and that date is what explains the state of the building now.

Where it stands today

The synagogue has not been used for worship since that attack, and it is not open to regular visits either. The only synagogue in the quarter still used for worship is the Elfrange. If you come here the door will be locked; seeing the inside depends on permission from the community or from the quarter.