Selichot tour [During the month of Elul]
A large marble board on the wall of the synagogue courtyard, records that the synagogue’s founding was initiated by Yosef Yishak Ades and Obadia Yoshiahu Ades in memory of Yishak Ades and Yoshiahu Ades and dedicated it to the Halabi community in 1905. The year mentioned on the board is not the year specified on the door and so it may be when the synagogue was used for the first time.
All along the eastern wall, is the holy ark, made of walnut and inlaid with mother-of-pearl. The synagogue mural is art-deco style of that era, with examples of geometric decorations and amazing arabesques.
Alongside paintings of the 12 tribes, most prominent in Stark’s work in the synagogue are symbols adopted by the Zionist movement during its first years: A Menorah, the Star of David and Hebrew letters. The wall is decorated with more and more menorahs, Stars of David and flowers. Each wall includes four symbols of tribes in round medallions. Among them is a verse from the book of Isaiah. At the bottom of the painting are the marks of the zodiac.
The combination of these two pieces, the holy ark and the murals, in the synagogue which resided in the new Jerusalem of those days, creates an ensemble of local art, rare in its quality, which includes symbols, and many meanings.
As part of the Landmarks Project, it was decided to carry out a project whose goal was the preservation and recreation of the magnificent murals which have gone through decay over the years. During the last years the original murals were revealed and preserved and were presented to the public in April 2015. This unique preservation project was carried out together with the Jerusalem municipality, the Yad Ben Tsvi institute and the Israel Antiquities Authority. The Directorate in the Authority of Antiquities, set out with the goal of thephysical preservation of the paintings, the removal of modern layers of paint and recreating damaged paintings.
The result of these preservation efforts is magnificent to see. The combination of a synagogue active since its first day and up to today, and such impressive work by a Bezalel artist, is very unique in Israel. The synagogue, after going through preservation, empowers the story of the exciting way the Halabi community and its ties to Zion met to create Israeli art based on sources of the Jewish tradition.