Hubka, Thomas C., 1946-

Resplendent synagogue : architecture and worship in an eighteenth-century Polish community / Thomas C. Hubka.

Hanover [N.H.] : Brandeis University Press, published by University Press of New England, ©2003.

xix, 226 pages : illustrations (some color), maps ; 29 cm.

The Tauber Institute for the Study of European Jewry series

Thomas C. Hubka, an architectural historian known for his work on American vernacular architecture, immersed himself in medieval and early modern Jewish history, religion, and culture to prepare for this remarkable study of the eighteenth-century Polish synagogue in the town of Gwozdziec, now in present Ukraine. Hubka selected the Gwozdziec Synagogue -- one of the finest examples of a small-town wooden synagogue from the former Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth -- because of the completeness of its photographic and historical records. This truly resplendent synagogue exemplified a high point in Jewish architectural art and religious painting, a tradition that was later abandoned by Eastern-European Jewish communities in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Because almost all wooden synagogues, like the Gwozdziec Synagogue, were destroyed by the Nazis, this book revives a spiritual community lost to history.
Graced with nearly 200 historical photographs, architectural drawings, maps, diagrams, and color illustrations, Resplendent Synagogue vividly recreates the spiritual heart of a once-vibrant Jewish community. Hubka "reads" the synagogue both as a historical document and as a cultural artifact. His interpretation of its art and architecture -- and its liturgy -- enables him to recreate a pre-modern Jewish community seen in relation to both its internal traditions of worship and its external relations with Gentile neighbors. Hubka demonstrates that while the architectural exterior of the synagogue was largely the product of non-Jewish, regional influences, the interior design and elaborate wall-paintings signified a distinctly Jewish art form. The collaboration of Jewish and Gentile builders, craftsmen, and artists in the creation of this magnificent wooden structure attests to an eighteenth-century period of relative prosperity and community well-being for the Jews of Gwozdziec. Hubka's unique exploration of a lost religious and cultural artifact breathes new life into a forgotten but fascinating aspect of eighteenth-century Polish Jewry and is certain to inspire discussion and debate among modern readers.

1584652160 (cloth ; alk. paper)
9781584652168 (cloth ; alk. paper)

Synagogue architecture Ukraine Hvizdet︠s︡ʹ.
Building, Wooden Ukraine Hvizdet︠s︡ʹ.
Architecture, Polish Ukraine Hvizdet︠s︡ʹ 18th century.
Jewish art and symbolism Ukraine Hvizdet︠s︡ʹ.
Lost architecture Ukraine Hvizdet︠s︡ʹ.
Jews Ukraine Hvizdet︠s︡ʹ Social life and customs.
Building, Wooden.
Jewish art and symbolism.
Jews Social life and customs.
Lost architecture.
Synagogue architecture.
Geschichte
Synagogen.
Synagogue architecture Ukraine Gvozdets.
Building, Wooden Ukraine Gvozdets.
Architecture, Polish Ukraine Gvozdets 18th century.
Jewish art and symbolism Ukraine Gvozdets.
Lost architecture Ukraine Gvozdets.
Jews Ukraine Gvozdets Social life and customs.
Architecture synagogale Ukraine.
Art juif Ukraine.
Juifs Moeurs et coutumes Ukraine 18e siècle.
Synagoge.
Jüdische Gemeinde.
Ukraine Hvizdet︠s︡ʹ.
Gwoʹzdziec

Tauber Institute for the Study of European Jewry series (Unnumbered)

Location: Library main 229668
Call No.: NA5955.U472 G8 2003
Status: Available