Jüdisches Kulturmuseum Veitshöchheim

About the museum

Around 1730 a Jewish resident had a synagogue built on the northern edge of Veitshöchheim. From the outside it resembled a village house; besides the prayer hall it contained an apartment for the cantor and a mikveh. Around 1900 the interior was redesigned and decorated with Art Nouveau paintings.

In the summer of 1938 the municipality initiated its takeover of the building, and the small Jewish community was forced to sell it at demolition value. As a result it was not destroyed during the November Pogrom and was soon converted into a fire station. When the municipality had it converted into an exhibition building from 1986 onward, remains of the original furnishings were found beneath the floor, and an extensive genizah was discovered in the attic – discarded books, documents, textiles and objects whose discovery is of great importance for genizah research.

With the help of these finds and historic photographs, the prayer hall was restored and rededicated by March 1994. Since then the synagogue has been the centerpiece of the municipality's Jewish Cultural Museum, which also includes an 18th-century Jewish house and a new entrance building. In 2019 the permanent exhibition “Schauplatz Dorf” (The Village as a Stage) was redesigned: it examines the networks, everyday life and exclusion of rural Jews as well as how this heritage is treated today. The Genisaprojekt Veitshöchheim continues to research the finds.

Highlights

• Reconstructed prayer hall with Torah ark and octagonal bimah from around 1730
• Finds from the genizah in the synagogue attic
• Mikveh in the synagogue building
• 18th-century Jewish house
• Summer concerts in the synagogue courtyard

Permanent exhibitions

• Schauplatz Dorf – Redesigned in 2019, the permanent exhibition in the synagogue, the cantor's apartment and the house uses genizah finds to tell of Jewish life in the village and how it is remembered today.

Founded

1994

Operated by

Gemeinde Veitshöchheim

Director

Johanna Weiss

Admission & discounts

Free admission with, among others, the Ehrenamtskarte (volunteer card), Jugendleitercard (youth leader card), ICOM card and Kulturtafel eligibility, as well as for volunteer service participants and members of the Simon-Höchheimer-Gesellschaft.

Accessibility

• Partially wheelchair accessible
• Elevator: no information
• Accessible restroom: no information
• Accessible parking: no information
• Service dogs welcome: no information
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

Not all rooms of the museum are accessible; the museum will help where possible.

Kids & families

The museum hasn’t published any information on this – please ask the museum directly.

Getting there & parking

Amenities & dining

The museum hasn’t published any information on this – please ask the museum directly.

Events & venue rental

• Spaces for rent

The seminar room in the entrance building can be rented for events (local associations €14, other organizers €27 per day).

Plan your visit