In the Middle Ages, Jews were forced to leave Munich several times after successive pogroms. Until the turn of the 18th and 19th century, there was a ban on Jewish settlement in the city. A new community was established in 1815, and the first synagogue was opened in 1826 . The construction of another synagogue, designed by the French architect Jean Baptiste Métivier (1781-1853) working in Bavaria, began in 1883 and was completed in 1887. It was a magnificent building that reflected the medieval traditions and architecture of the city. The longitudinal structure had three aisles, a circular apse at the east end, and an entrance for men at the west end. The interior was surrounded by galleries for women on three sides, supported by columns made of red marble. All the cornices and window sills in the interior were in alabaster colour, the ceiling had a light blue background, and the coffering was gray (H. Eschwege, Die Synagoge in der deutschen Geschichte, Dresden 1980, pp. 128–129).
In an archival postcard from the collection of the District Museum in Leszno, on the right side in the foreground, there is the Renaissance building of the Munich Art Gallery. Behind it, slightly to the left, is the old synagogue building constructed in the Neo-Romanesque style. The distinctive façade of the synagogue, in the form of a massive tower, is adorned with numerous bifore (arcaded windows divided into two parts by columns or pillars) located in polygonal towers. On the side elevation, similar arched windows can be seen arranged on two levels. In the square in front of the buildings there are horse-drawn carriages and people walking around. At the upper edge on the left side, there is the inscription: "Munich. Art House and Synagogue". In the lower left corner, the publishing address is stamped: "WILHELM HOFFMANN/ A.G./ DRESDEN". On the reverse side, on the left side, there is a print: "Postcard". The postmark has only partially survived.
In 1938, the synagogue in Munich was set on fire. The Jewish Community Council was forced to sell the damaged building to the city. The building was soon demolished, and the site was leveled (https://www.juedische-friedhoefe.info/friedhoefe-nach-regionen/bayern/oberbayern/muenchen/juedisches-leben-in-muenchen.html, accessed on 8 April 2021).
The postcard was purchased for the collection of the Leszno Museum in 2011 from Marta Pogoreło of Leszno.
Dariusz Czwojdrak
