Barczewo Synagogue

On ul. Kościuszki stands a pale Neoclassical building with large round-arched windows that looks more like a concert hall than a house of prayer. It is Barczewo's former synagogue, the only one surviving in the Olsztyn district. It was saved because it had stopped being a synagogue a few months before Kristallnacht.

History

The synagogue was built in the mid-19th century – sources give 1845–1850 or 1847 – on fieldstone foundations. In 1937 the Jewish community of Barczewo sold the building to private owners. Its change of use meant it was not destroyed during Kristallnacht, and at the end of 1938 it hosted model-making classes. During the Second World War the Germans set up a prison here, which operated from 1940 to 1945.

After the war it housed prison staff, then stood empty and decayed. In 1976–1978 it was thoroughly renovated as a branch of the Museum of Warmia and Masuria. From 1980 to 1996 it was home to the Weaving Centre of Warmia and Masuria, run by Barbara Hulanicka, who made decorative tapestries for the Vatican and the White House. After another renovation in 2000, the synagogue became the "Synagoga" Art Gallery.

What to see

• The façade divided by pilasters, with large round-arched windows.
• The five-sided apse on the east side.
• The women's gallery with a wooden balustrade supported on two posts.
• Art exhibitions in the former prayer hall with its flat ceiling and ceramic-tiled floor.

Tripto tip

Gallery opening hours depend on current exhibitions, so check before you go. In front of the building there is an information board of the town trail. Fifteen to thirty minutes is enough, and St Andrew's Church is about a hundred metres away.