Nożyk Synagogue

The Nożyk Synagogue at ulica Twarda 6 in Warsaw's city centre, Poland, was built in 1898-1902 and funded by the merchant Zalman Nożyk and his wife Rywka. Designed by Leandro Marconi in a Neo-Romanesque style with eclectic details, it served the Orthodox Jewish community of a city that before World War II had one of the largest Jewish populations in Europe. During the German occupation it was used as a stable and storehouse, its interior was devastated, and it survived the destruction of the Warsaw Ghetto and the city largely because of its position outside the ghetto walls and its practical use by the occupiers. It is the only Warsaw synagogue to survive the war and the only active prewar synagogue in the city today. After the war it was restored in stages, with major work completed in the 1980s and later, and it continues as a place of prayer for the Jewish Community of Warsaw. The interior has a main prayer hall with a women's gallery, an Ark of the Covenant, and decoration restored to evoke the original. A tall rectangular nave and simple exterior brickwork reflect the early 20th-century architectural fashion for historicist synagogues. The synagogue sits near the former ghetto boundary and next to the Jewish Theatre and community offices on Grzybowski Square. Because it is an active house of worship, visiting hours are limited and depend on services and community schedules. Visitors are expected to dress modestly, and men may be asked to cover their heads. The building offers a rare surviving link to the prewar Jewish life that POLIN and the ghetto memorials interpret.