Synagogue of Ben Ezra

(Other names: El-Geniza Synagogue, El-Yaho church)

In the Encyclopaedia Britannica, a Synagogue is described as "A prayer place for the Jews".
In old Greek it means: "The usual place where the Jews assemble to receive religious teachings and to
worship" Some of these Temples were built close to a source of water, as much as for protection from any
attack, not just for ablution!
The Synagogue of Ben Ezra was originally named El-Shamieen
Church, and is situated behind the "hanging church". The
Synagogue once had an old copy of the Old Testament, and it was
said that Ezra the Prophet (Al-Azir) had written it.
It is believed that the site of the Synagogue where the box of
Baby Moses was found.

The Ben Ezra Synagogue was originally a Christian church that the Copts had to sell, to the Jews, in 882A.D
in order to pay the annual taxes imposed by the Muslim rulers of the time, and therefore Abraham Ben
Ezra, who came from Jerusalem during the reign of Ahmed Ibn Tulun, bought the church for the sum of
20,000 dinars.

Through the centuries, the Synagogue received extensive restorations and renovations until it reached its
present state. The present building dates back to 1892; the original one had collapsed and a new one was
built, echoing it.
A description of the Synagogue
It is built in the shape of a basilica (rectangle), consisting of 2 floors; the 1st dedicated for the men while
the 2nd is dedicated for the women. The entrance is situated on the
north side.

The 1st floor:

It is rectangular in shape, measuring 17m in length and 11.3m wide. It is divided into 3 parts, the largest
being the middle one (4.75 m in width); these parts are divided by steel bars painted in a marble-like
colour.
There is a platform located in front of the sanctuary, where the rabbi stands to read the Torah. The lector
platform is in an octagonal shape and is made of marble. A copper fence is situated on the 8th side of the
platform, where the Torah, and its rolls, is rested. There is a memorial Stella located in front of the
platform. In the middle of this Stella is a top part consisting of 2 semi-arches carried on 3 pillars, with a
height of 85cm. there are 2 rooms on each side of the Holy Ark on the 1st floor.

The Most Important Decorations of the Synagogue:

Geometrical Decoration:
This decoration goes back to the Turkish Period. It is clearly seen on the side halls with patterns such as,
star patterns, pentagonal patterns and rectangles.

Floral decorations:

Used as a background for the geometrical patterns, they are also found around the Star of David in the
middle of the ceiling. Here is a mixture of the Hatai and the Roman decorations, which are floral patterns
and are called "Ottoman Arabesque". This decoration includes floral patterns, palmettos and lotus flower.
The south eastern side of the top of the Torah closet is decorated with stalactites, on top of which is a semi
circle with ray decorations. The frame of the Torah Ark is a mimic decoration and on each of the two sides
are 2 wooden columns with geometrical patterns. The 2 columns have stalactite capitals of the Ottoman
period.

Ben Ezra's Temple (Synagogue)

Ben Ezra's Temple, lying at the end point of church buildings , is reported to have been erected in the 6th or
presumably the 9th Century AD. The temple site and the surrounding grounds, originally a property of the
church, was acquired by the Jews in return for "kantars of gold". The basilica-style temple contains a Jewish
heritage library, that was inaugurated on November 25,1997.

In 1896, a collection of documents known as "Jineesah" were found in the temple. The document, written
mostly in what was called "Hebrew Arabic", a variation of Arabic in Hebrew alphabet, exclusively used by Jews
in the Middle Ages, reflected political, economic and social conditions of Jews under the Arab rule of Egypt as
well as sectarial organizations and relations between different Jewish sects.
The said documents contained a number of rare manuscripts of interpretations of the Old Testament, excerpts
of linguistic research on Hebrew as well as documents explaining how Jews dealt with the Arab Muslim
authorities.
These documents, first compiled during the Fatimid era, were earlier within in Aramaic but were later written in
Arabic, the official language in government departments (diwans).
At the back of the temple, there is a very deep well, where the coffers in which Prophet Moses as an infant was
placed by his mother, was reportedly found.