Tuesday, May 5, 2015

Exploring Prague Part 3: Jewish Prague

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On this exciting 3 hour walk, you will trace the history of the Jewish community from its early medieval beginning to the most important moments during the era of the Emperors through its struggles and triumphs in the twentieth century.

The rich history of the Jewish settlement in Prague dates back to the tenth century; at the latest from twelfth century Jews formed their community near the very heart of the Old Town, in proximity to main merchant roads leading from the Old town to the Prague Castle. This location of the Jewish Ghetto remained more or less the same until 20th century when it definitely lost its medieval and late-medieval look and transformed into its current Art Nouveau state.


You will spend a significant amount of time exploring the many synagogues that remain open to the public, including the Old New Synagogue, which is the oldest remaining Synagogue in Europe. The Jewish Cemetery, which dates from the fifteenth century, presents a unique opportunity to discuss burial customs and rituals, while the Jewish Town Hall gives space to explore the flourishing of the Jewish community in the 16th century.


In the development of the Jewish community in Prague there is a pattern common to other European cities: isolation, slow gaining of privileges and rights and their subsequent loss, threats of pogroms, and gradual assimilation and emancipation during the Enlightenment. From the nineteenth century the Ghetto became a literary theme not only for Jewish writers, but for German and Czech writers as well. At this point, one matter starts to be an important feature of Prague: its unique atmosphere of three interwoven cultures (Czech, German, and Jewish) of which Franz Kafka is just one, although the most widely known, example.

Led by an expert in religious history, you will come away with an appreciation for the unique qualities of the Jewish community in Prague and its place within the context of the history of the European Jewish community. 

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