New Synagogue

The New Synagogue, opened in 2010, stands near the site of the medieval synagogue and is one of the most architecturally significant Jewish buildings constructed in Germany since the Second World War. The design by Manuel Herz references the Hebrew word for synagogue through its geometric forms, and the building's copper and glass exterior creates a striking contrast with the surrounding streets.

The Mainz Jewish community is one of the oldest in the German-speaking world, with documented history going back to 900 CE. The original Jewish quarter was centred nearby, and Jewish intellectual and religious life in Mainz shaped European Judaism for centuries. The new building is both a functional synagogue and a monument to that history. Guided tours are available on selected days.

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A story
Mainz had one of the most important Jewish communities in medieval Europe — the great talmudic academy founded by Rabbi Gershom ben Judah in the tenth century influenced Jewish life across the continent. The community was destroyed in the Rhineland massacres of 1096, during the First Crusade, when thousands of Jews were killed by Crusader armies passing through the Rhine cities.

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