The Vinkovci Synagogue, also the Second Vinkovci Synagogue (), was a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

synagogue A synagogue, also called a shul or a temple, is a place of worship for Jews and Samaritans. It is a place for prayer (the main sanctuary and sometimes smaller chapels) where Jews attend religious services or special ceremonies such as wed ...

, located in

Vinkovci Vinkovci () is a city in Slavonia, in the Vukovar-Syrmia County in eastern Croatia. The city settlement's population was 28,111 in the 2021 census, while the total population was 30,842, making it the largest town of the county. It is a local tr ...

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

. Completed in 1923 and destroyed by the

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

s in , prior to its destruction, the synagogue was among the largest and the most prestigious synagogues in Croatia.

History

The Jewish community Vinkovci was established with the arrival of the first Jews in 1873, and the first synagogue was built in 1880. The growth of the Jewish community in Vinkovci, as well as its tangible affirmation in the society, made the first synagogue insufficient. The first initiative to build a new synagogue appeared in 1911. Construction was scheduled to begin as soon as the financial structure was completed and appropriate place was found.

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

postponed the construction. After the war the main problem was financing. Due to the inflation of the

Yugoslav krone The Yugoslav krone ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, separator=" / ", крyна, kruna; ) was a short-lived, provisional currency used in territories of the newly formed Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes (KSCS, later renamed Yugoslavia), which had previousl ...

, community could not finance the construction solely from the contribution of its members. In 1920, the fundraising started, and at that time the Jewish community of Vinkovci had about 200 members, of which 150 lived in Vinkovci and another 50 in the surrounding villages. In the mid-1922, thanks to the persistence and organizational capabilities of rabbi Mavro Frankfurter, the construction of the synagogue started. Jakob Schlesinger, a wealthy wholesaler and the owner of the steam mill in Vinkovci, gave the largest financial contribution to the construction.

Design

The Second Vinkovci Synagogue was built under the architect Frank Funtak in the Aleksandar Street (today the Zvonimir Street 18–20). The total cost of construction was 4,5 million krones. Funtak turned to classicism when choosing styles for the Vinkovci Synagogue. Although this style dominated, the building also had elements of the 19th-century synagogue architecture and of

art deco Art Deco, short for the French (), is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design that first Art Deco in Paris, appeared in Paris in the 1910s just before World War I and flourished in the United States and Europe during the 1920 ...

. The synagogue

dome A dome () is an architectural element similar to the hollow upper half of a sphere. There is significant overlap with the term cupola, which may also refer to a dome or a structure on top of a dome. The precise definition of a dome has been a m ...

was built in

Mudéjar style Mudéjar were Muslims who remained in Iberia in the late medieval period following the Christian reconquest. It is also a term for Mudéjar art, which was greatly influenced by Islamic art, but produced typically by Christian craftsmen for Chri ...

, while double windows and the trefoil upper row of windows were built in

rundbogenstil (round-arch style) is a 19th-century historic revival style of architecture popular in the German-speaking lands and the German diaspora. It combines elements of Byzantine, Romanesque, and Renaissance architecture with particular s ...

. Vinkovci Synagogue had a longitudinal construction with a rectangular shape. Funtak took the dome style from the Vukovar Synagogue. In addition to the dome, a tripartite front was a traditional element of the synagogue architecture from the 20th century. The central part of the

façade A façade or facade (; ) is generally the front part or exterior of a building. It is a loanword from the French language, French (), which means "frontage" or "face". In architecture, the façade of a building is often the most important asp ...

was slightly withdrawn in relation to the side. The sides of the synagogue were visually highlighted with an art deco set of gables above the cornice of the building.

Destruction

The synagogue was destroyed during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

in 1941-42 by the regime of the

Independent State of Croatia The Independent State of Croatia (, NDH) was a World War II–era puppet state of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy (1922–1943), Fascist Italy. It was established in parts of Axis occupation of Yugoslavia, occupied Yugoslavia on 10 April 1941, ...

. Rabbi Mavro Frankfurter and the president of the community, Ignjat Lang, were both killed in the

Jasenovac concentration camp Jasenovac () was a concentration camp, concentration and extermination camp established in the Jasenovac, Sisak-Moslavina County, village of the same name by the authorities of the Independent State of Croatia (NDH) in occupied Yugoslavia durin ...

Notes

References

{{Vinkovci 1873 establishments in Croatia 1942 disestablishments in Europe 1940s disestablishments in Croatia 20th-century synagogues in Europe Ashkenazi Jewish culture in Croatia Ashkenazi synagogues Buildings and structures demolished in 1942 Buildings and structures destroyed during World War II Destroyed synagogues in Croatia Jewish organizations established in 1873 Moorish Revival architecture in Croatia Moorish Revival synagogues Religious buildings and structures in Vukovar-Syrmia County Synagogues completed in 1923 Vinkovci

History

Design

Destruction

See also

Notes

References