Ready for Restoration - Synagogues in Er Rachidia and Oujda - Part II

Bima/Hechal in Grand Synagogue, Oujda.

I have written much already about Oujda and you can read that here. As the Grand Synagogue, also known as the Moroccan Synagogue as there was also an Algerian Synagogue, turns 80 this year (built in 1930), I thought I would take this occasion to revisit it. The Grand Synagogue is in remarkable condition despite having no congregants. It was once well served by a population of thousands. According to H.Z. Hirschberg's Hebrew language "Inside Maghreb: the Jews in North Africa", Oujda's Jewish population stood at around 4,000 by the mid-1950s. You can read more about the modern Jewish history of Oujda here. Today there are three to six Jews left. The synagogue is a perfect candidate for restoration as I've explained in the past and should be considered as one of the more beautiful, large North African synagogues that has not been converted to other purposes (e.g., mosque). I am including photos from my 2009 visit below:

Stained glass ark.

View of hekhal, main seating area, women's gallery and ark.

Ready for Restoration - Synagogues in Er Rachidia and Oujda - Part 1

Exterior of Sla el Kbira in Er Rachidia (Hebrew reads Union/Unity Synagogue)

Around the Jewish high holidays a number of articles come out talking about the most beautiful synagogues in the world. The authors/contributers can be forgiven if they don't take every synagogue into account especially those that have fallen into disuse or disrepair. Years ago, few would have mentioned the Eldridge Street Synagogue, built in 1887 and restored in 2007, amongst the most beautiful but today it has regained its title of "jewel of a shul."

This year two synagogues in Morocco turn 80 years old or near 80 years old, both built in the 1930s, that I believe deserve mention.

Er Rachidia
The first, called Sla el Kbira, was built in the 1930s (some say 1932). It still exists today although it's roof has collapsed from heavy rains. Located in the center of Er Rachidia, it's Hebrew inscription is still visible from the outside. I will write more about this synagogue and the surrounding synagogues and cemeteries soon but please find photos and a video from my 2008 visit below:

Interior of synagogue. Bima/hekhal with hand painted decalogue back right. Light pours through the open roof.

Hand painted decalogue.

Ark. Filled with hay.

More to come on Er Rachidia and Oujda later this week including videos.

D. R. Cowles Photographs of Jewish Morocco in NYC

D.R. Cowles has photographed extensively in Morocco and his photographs will be on display at the 92nd Street Y starting on Friday, Sept. 4. For some of his photographs of Jewish Morocco click here and here. His Morocco photos were taken in 1993 and 1995. I have visited most of the Jewish sites that he photographed - some have been restored (like the synagogue in Arazan) and some have almost completely deteriorated (like the Mansano Synagogue in Fes). This exhibit is a must see. Information is below: D. R. COWLES—PHOTOGRAPHS, 1993-2008 Using a hundred-year-old photographic process, D. R. Cowles has spent the last fifteen years turning it to contemporary purposes: documenting vanishing architecture and artisanal traditions, reinterpreting art antiquities and exploring the untapped potential of his nearly-obsolete medium to advance a modern aesthetic. In his choice of subject matter as in his means of rendering it, the past is given new life: human history, art history and the history of photography converge in images equally informed by the present. This exhibition traces an artistic journey, representing several phases of Cowles’ work with key pieces. Fri, Sep 4—Wed, Oct 21, 2009 Viewing hours are 12–4pm on the following days unless otherwise stated: 9/4 9/8 9/9 (12:15 start) 9/18 9/21 9/25 9/29 10/7 (12:15 start) 10/8 10/13 10/15 10/20 About D. R. COWLES Born in Boston, David Cowles studied at New York University's Graduate Institute for Film and Television and later at Concordia University where he majored in European and Jewish history. In 1993, fusing historical with photographic interests, he made the first of numerous trips to North Africa to document remaining Jewish sites in Morocco, Egypt and Tunisia. In the course of this project, Cowles also photographed Islamic and traditional Moroccan architecture, Roman ruins, and art antiquities. Since 2002, he has moved from artistic documentary to making photographs as pure art, refining his late 19th century printing process and applying it to semi-abstract still life studies and multiple-print composite images. Cowles has lived in Montreal since 1976. His work is represented in numerous private and public collections including the National Gallery of Canada, the Canadian Centre for Architecture, the Tel Aviv Museum and the Jewish Museum of Casablanca.

All prints are courtesy of the artist. D. R. Cowles is represented by Yosefa Drescher Fine Art,www.ydfa.com.

For more information regarding this exhibit, please call 212.415.5740. General Viewing and Contact Information for the Weill Art Gallery The Milton J. Weill Art Gallery is open to patrons of Kaufmann Concert Hall during regularly scheduled events. For viewing at other times please call 212.415.5563 to schedule an appointment. Milton J. Weill Art Gallery, 92nd Street Y 1395 Lexington Avenue , New York City 92YTribeca Gallery Click here to visit the 92YTribeca Gallery at the 92YTribeca site.

Silent Prayer

Interior, Grand Synagogue in Oujda

Prayer and Hebrew books, Grand Synagogue in Oujda

(c) Chris Silver

Diagramming Oujda

Today, from the outside the Grande Synagogue in Oujda is still noticeably a synagogue with two stained glass Star of Davids and a sign above the entrance that reads Beit T'fila or House of Prayer. The synagogue is here and you can see in the Wikimapia link that a former Jewish school lies just north of the synagogue on the map.

The Grand Synagogue in Oujda will turn 80 next year

It was built in 1930. Here is the building from the outside (I will diagram this in the next couple days).

CTM is the official transport company of Morocco. Their Oujda office is housed underneath the synagogue.

Questions

1. Is it possible to raise the funding to begin restoration for its 80th year?

2. Do any readers have memories of the synagogue that they would like to share?