Restoration work on the magnificent Zion Neolog synagogue in Oradea, Romania is nearing completion, with scaffolding now removed to reveal the richly refurbished interior of the lofty central cupola. All work expected to be concluded by October.
Look at the difference between the photo at the top of this page and this video of the completed restored cupola! (Facebook users can also click here to see a gallery of photographs of the restored ceiling posted by the coordinator of the project, the architect Christian Puscas.)
The synagogue is being restored as part of a cross-border project funded by a more than €1.41 million grant from the European Union’s European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), aided by a further €400,000 from the Budapest Management Authority. The project mandated the restoration of two historic synagogues — the Zion synagogue in Oradea and the Kapolnas street synagogue in Debrecen, across the border in eastern Hungary — and their incorporation into religious tourism itineraries and cultural and educational programs.
The restored Kapolnas synagogue in Debrecen, still used by the local Jewish community, was rededicated last September.
Restoration work on the Zion synagogue kicked off in February 2014. “The end of the first stage of painting ended well,” the news site Crisana.ro quoted Puscas as saying. “The dome was one of the most difficult segments.” He said that before starting work on the restoration of the Moorish-style painting, tests were carried out for some 60 color samples, in order to respect the original painting in terms of both style and color.
Towering over the Cris River, the Zion synagogue is a landmark in downtown Oradea, much of whose center comprises a striking collection of art nouveau buildings. Built in 1878 for the Neolog community, it was designed by David Busch, at the time the town’s chief municipal architect. Though listed as a historic monument, It had long been out of use and in deteriorating condition.
There are five other synagogues in Oradea – the local Jewish community is situated in a complex that includes two orthodox synagogues, both of which also have been undergoing renovation, and three other synagogues in town are disused.
Click to see details about the restoration in the full Crisana.ro article
Click to see our previous post about the project
3 comments on “Romania: Restoration of Zion Synagogue in Oradea nears completion”
You can research the Jewish history of Oradea at http://www.tikvah.ro (and it is in English)
Yes, we link to Tikvah on the Romania pages of this web site http://jewish-heritage-europe.eu/romania/heritage-heritage-sites
I am Joel Knoblauch, writing from Reading, PA USA.I am interested to try to identify family history in Oradea.
One story in our family history is that my great grandfather, Emile Wolfgang, apprenticed in the bakery of “Uncle Miller”, in Oradea in about the 1890s, before he moved to Scranton, Pennsylvania, USA, where he opened a bakery with a partner, last name “Tischler”, who Emil met in Oradea.
Emil Wolfgang was the son of Frederick Wilhelm Wolfgang (born about 1815), from Tokay (and wife unknown).
Uncle Miller came to own the Oradea bakery because it was part of his wife’s dowry. It was through a blood relationship with Uncle Miller’s wife that Emil Wolfgang was related to Uncle Miller.
The Oradea bakery was the largest bakery in Oradea and is said to have served the military. Uncle Miller was a close friend of Count Tisza. It is said that there was park dedicated to Uncle Miller and that there was a statue of Uncle Miller in the park. Also, it is said that Uncle Miller was the first Jew that was allowed into the Baker’s Guild; but we don’t know which particular Baker’s Guild is being referred to.
It is said there were several other family bakeries (large bakeries) in cities such as Prague, Vienna, Budapest and/or Berlin. Each of two other bakeries were given to each of two other daughters as part of the dowry of each.
My family seems to have DNA association with the Viennese families, Bloch, Bauer, Pick, Rothschild, Schoenberg. My parents are cousins, so the genealogic lines get blurred; but I also seem to be associated with the rabbinical Katzenellenbogen family.
Can anyone help me with information.
Thank you.
Cheers.