Religious building of the 19th century, the Synagogue of Avignon has the particularity of being centered plan and breaks in accordance with the Judeo-Comtadine tradition.
The Avignon Synagogue was rebuilt after a fire in 1846. It testifies to a multisecular presence of a Jewish community in Avignon. The former ghetto was located at the top of the current district of Libra.
It has been classified since 1990 as Historic Monuments.
The current synagogue, still in operation, was rebuilt by architect Joseph-Auguste Joffroy.
A neoclassical rotunda supported by white columns is the prayer room. Let us note the absence of the siege of Elijah, a peculiarity of Comtadine synagogues.
Jews arrived in Provence as early as the first century. The first texts attesting to their presence, in the lower Rhone Valley, date back to the 10th century. In the 13th century, all towns and many rural villages were home to Jewish communities. During the reign of Philip the Bel (1306), the Jews were driven out of the Kingdom of France. Pope Clement VI decides to welcome them to the pontifical lands of the Comtat Venaissin. The notion of “Jews of the Pope” was born.
Thanks to the protection of the Popes, the Jewish community inscribed its memory in Comtadine lands. From Cavaillon to Carpentras, passing through Pernes-les-Fontaines and L'Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, the “Jews of the Pope” have left sumptuous and moving remains that blend Jewish culture and Provencal tradition.
Synagogue d'Avignon
2 place Jérusalem
84000 Avignon
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Dernière mise à jour 07/11/2024