Authors

Kolotygina Maria V.
Ancient east and other historical reminiscences in the architectural concept of the Synagogue of Trieste

Architecton: Proceedings of Higher Education №4 (92) December, 2025

The article is dedicated to the Trieste Synagogue (1906-1912) as an example of Italian synagogue architecture of the Risorgimento (1870-1910) and pan–European Jewish emancipation period. The analysis has shown that Middle Eastern "archaism" plays a special role in the architecture of the Trieste synagogue. The main sources of inspiration were the Syrian basilicas of the 4-6th centuries A.D., the Palestinian synagogues of that time, and the biblical description of the Second Temple. This kind of citation stands out from a number of Oriental synagogues of the emancipation period. An unusual choice of style raises the question of the nature of orientalism in synagogue architecture. This is the reason to analyze orientalism as a multidimensional phenomenon where art, culture, social interactions, and politics are closely interrelated. From this point of view, this appeal to the images of the ancient history of the Jewish people became a competent solution to all the contradictions of the synagogue architecture of the emancipation period.