JTF.ORG Forum
General Category => General Discussion => Topic started by: Tina Greco - Melbourne on March 23, 2008, 05:38:07 AM
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(http://www.hobartsynagogue.org/gallery/_exterior01.jpg)
The Synagogue's foundation stone was laid on
Wednesday August 9th, 1843. The building was
designed in the Egyptian Revival Style by
James Alexander Thomson, a Scot who had been
transported in 1825 (at the age of 20) for
attempted jewel robbery. He was later assigned
as a draftsman to the Public Works Department
where he worked with architects John Lee Archer
and David Lambe. A Free Pardon was granted to
him in 1839 and he set up in business as a
valuator, estate agent, map printer, engineer,
surveyor and architect.
The building was created in the 'New Age of
Enlightenment' and the 'Dawn of Science'. It
was the age of reason. Napoleon's invasion of
Egypt had opened up a new world of knowledge
and a sense of history. Egypt meant antiquity
and the Hobart synagogue building was meant
to indicate, amongst other things, Judaism's
ancient roots. The front is bold and massive,
the entrance being decorated with two carved
pillars supporting an architrave and cornice
and upon this appears the following Hebrew
inscription from the Book of Exodus:
(http://www.hobartsynagogue.org/gallery/exterior02.jpg)
Wherever my name is mentioned there
will I come and bless you
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(http://www.hobartsynagogue.org/gallery/gallery01.jpg)
View of the interior taken from the ladies gallery
showing the Ark and bimah
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(http://www.hobartsynagogue.org/gallery/ark01.jpg)
The Ark.
(http://www.hobartsynagogue.org/gallery/ark02.jpg)
The Scrolls we have are thought to be as
old as the Synagogue, including a beautiful
silver cased one which came to us from India
but is probably initially of Syrian origin.
This Scroll was donated by Lady Rachel Ezra
of Calcutta in 1951.
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(http://www.hobartsynagogue.org/gallery/bench01.jpg)
One of several numbered convict benches
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(http://www.hobartsynagogue.org/gallery/donation01.jpg)
Donations and Bequests Board
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(http://www.hobartsynagogue.org/gallery/torah01.jpg)
We have on display a Memorial Sefer Torah which has
come to us from Czechoslovakia. It is one of 1,564
scrolls seized from desecrated synagogues by the
Nazis. It is believed they were intended to be used
and displayed after the war in a museum featuring
'relics of the extinct Jewish race'. These scrolls
were found in piles in the disused Michle Synagogue
in Prague after World War II. In 1963 they were
purchased from the Czech Government and taken to
Westminster Synagogue in London where special racks
were built to house them.
While our former president and his wife were in
London they learned of the scrolls from his home
city of Prague. They saw them at the Westminster
Synagogue and met the scribe, David Brand, who had
miraculously arrived at the door of that synagogue
at the right time and asked for work. Naturally,
the scribe was greeted with open arms and for 27
years he and a team of people painstakingly hand
wrote, corrected and made usable any of the scrolls
which could be saved.
These repaired scrolls are now to be found all over
the world, more often than not in small communities
which find it difficult to buy scrolls due to lack
of funds. It was not feasible to fully restore our
Scroll, possibly fire-damaged, and so it is not used
by us in worship. We have it on display in memory
of the millions of Jews who died as a result of The
Holocaust.
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(http://www.hobartsynagogue.org/gallery/joseph01.jpg)
Founders of the Synagogue
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(http://www.hobartsynagogue.org/gallery/queenvic01.jpg)
Prayer for the Royal Family
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Great thread! The pictures are excellent. O0
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Why would they want to copy the exterior of the building off of the ways of Egypt? We were supposed to leave the slave mentality behind in Egypt.
Hey, the architecture of modern Egypt has nothing in common with what they built 3400 years ago.
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Why would they want to copy the exterior of the building off of the ways of Egypt? We were supposed to leave the slave mentality behind in Egypt.
Hey, the architecture of modern Egypt has nothing in common with what they built 3400 years ago.
Exactly O0
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Very good mate. O0
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Wonderful pics. Judaism is just the most wonderful religion on Earth. I love everything about it.
I really wish I was born a jew.
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Very beautiful pictures!!! I have never entered in any Synagog in my life! I am aware of one in my city back in Romania, but it is always closed when I pass by! I met a woman from Canada who is Executive Director in a Jewish Community Centre and she asked one of the Rabin who lives in Bucharest, how many Jews are in entire Romania, and there are only around 4000. Maybe that Synagog in really closed.
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Wonderful pics. Judaism is just the most wonderful religion on Earth. I love everything about it.
I really wish I was born a jew.
It's awsome when you think of these people as the nation G-d chose to be a 'nation of priests' some 4000 years ago. All this time and all the attempts to convert or exterminate them and they're still here!
Think of all the great ancient societies. The Persians, Egyptians, Greeks, Romans..................they're ALL gone . All confined to history's rubbish bin. They're descendants are here, but their languages, religions and cultures have all completely changed. All except the Jews. They're still here, still speaking Hebrew, still studying Torah, Still wearing their beards and tzit tzit.
Their mere existance is a miracle.
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Greetings - The kind of countries Australia should be emulating are the Balkan states. Look how well multiculturalism has worked in the former Yugoslavia. Soon we too can enjoy the benefits of the multicultural utopia here in Australia. My fellow left-wing intellectuals and myself are of the opinion that we should be paying more taxes. These taxes should go to fund housing and cultural activities for immigrants. We also feel terribly ashamed that some of these immigrants wish to blow us up. We will do everything we can to make amends for our terrible crimes. We are also disgusted at those evil Zionists in Israel who are persecuting those poor, innocent, peace loving Palestinians.
Thank you
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Greetings - The kind of countries Australia should be emulating are the Balkan states. Look how well multiculturalism has worked in the former Yugoslavia. Soon we too can enjoy the benefits of the multicultural utopia here in Australia. My fellow left-wing intellectuals and myself are of the opinion that we should be paying more taxes. These taxes should go to fund housing and cultural activities for immigrants. We also feel terribly ashamed that some of these immigrants wish to blow us up. We will do everything we can to make amends for our terrible crimes. We are also disgusted at those evil Zionists in Israel who are persecuting those poor, innocent, peace loving PLO/Hamas Arab Muslim Nazis.
Thank you
Do I detect a hint of sarcasm there? :::D