High Synagogue

This is Kraków's third oldest synagogue, completed in 1563. Unique for having its prayer room upstairs, it’s widely speculated that the High synagogue was designed as such to protect the congregation from unfriendly neighbours. The design didn’t save it from being the subject of arson during WWII sadly, and today no original furnishings remain. The mostly white-washed upstairs prayer room has retained only scant details from the original wall frescos, however, the Aron Kodesh (torah ark) - which includes two small griffins - has survived. The size of the high-ceilinged room indicates that it was a magnificent space before its destruction, but today it represents a minor detour on a tour of Kazimierz hosting a small exhibit of photos and family histories of Cracovian Jews from the inter-war period. On the ground floor is a Jewish bookstore run by Galicia Jewish Museum.