Synagogue architecture often follows styles in vogue at the place and time of construction. There is no set blueprint for synagogues and the architectural shapes and interior designs of synagogues vary greatly. According to tradition, the Shekhinah or divine presence can be found wherever there is a minyan, a quorum, of ten. A synagogue always contains an Torah ark where the Torah scrolls are kept, called the aron qodesh (Hebrew: אָרוֹן קׄדֶש) by Ashkenazi Jews and the hekhal (היכל) by Sephardic Jews.
Synagogues are buildings for congregational worship, and thus require a large central space (as do churches and mosques). They are generally designed with the Torah ark at one end, typically opposite the main entrance, and a bimah either in front of that, or more centrally placed. Raised galleries, usually for female worshipers, have been common. Beyond these points, there is little that dictates the design. Historically, synagogues were normally built in a version of the prevailing architectural style of their time and place. Thus, the synagogue in Kaifeng, China looked very like Chinese temples of that region and era, with its outer wall and open garden in which several buildings were arranged.
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style of synagoguearchitecture in the United Kingdom, and a synagogue emulating its design can be found in Sydney, Australia. Princes Road Synagogue came...
The Great Synagogue of London was a former Orthodox Jewish congregation and synagogue, located in the City of London, England, in the United Kingdom....
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indicating that synagogues additionally functioned as a communal centres. Some modern-day synagogue architects have relied upon synagoguearchitecture in ancient...
area they were to work on. Judaism regards the Torah ark, a place in a synagogue where the Torah scrolls are kept, as a miniature Holy of Holies. The exact...
built-in arks in synagogues, such as the 1763 Touro Synagogue in Newport, Rhode Island, which was inspired by a trend of grandeur in architectural design. The...
influences also impacted synagoguearchitecture and were combined with the Jewish ritual and liturgical requirements. Cochin synagogues are unique in the world...
local Jewish architect Artur Szalatnai. The synagogue is an important example of Slovak religious architecture of the 20th century and it is listed as a...
buildings such as synagogues and mikvehs, as well as Jewish schools. Synagoguearchitecture List of Jewish architects Jewish Architectural Heritage Foundation...
Architecture of cathedrals and great churches Synagoguearchitecture Timeline of architecture Timeline of architectural styles Parametricism Hans Erich Kubach...
Revival style of synagoguearchitecture. The synagogue was destroyed in 1938 on Kristallnacht. Members of the SA and SS burned down the synagogue on the night...
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important 20th-century synagogue in England in terms of architecture, as well as the finest surviving architectural example of a synagogue from the interwar...
the new synagogue, the lot in central Sofia had been occupied by an older synagogue. One of the architectural monuments of Sofia, the synagogue, located...
Australia and is a rare example of the Egyptian Revival style of synagoguearchitecture. The Egyptian Revival building was constructed in 1845. The trapezoidal...