Synagogue in the Agora of Athens | |
---|---|
Religion | |
Affiliation | Judaism (former) |
Ecclesiastical or organisational status | Synagogue (267–396 CE) |
Status | Ruins |
Location | |
Location | Ancient Agora of Athens (now modern-day Athens) |
Country | Greece |
Location of the former synagogue in Athens | |
Geographic coordinates | 37°58′29″N 23°43′20″E / 37.9747°N 23.7222°E |
Architecture | |
Type | Synagogue architecture |
Completed | c. 267 CE |
Materials | Pentelic marble |
The Synagogue in the Agora of Athens is an ancient former Jewish synagogue, that was located in the Ancient Agora of Athens, in modern-day Greece.
During an excavation in the summer of 1977, a piece of Pentelic marble apparently once part of a curvilinear frieze over a doorway or niche was discovered a few meters from the northeast corner of the Metroon.[1] The marble fragment is incised with the images of a seven-branched Menorah and a Lulav, or palm branch.[2] The synagogue is thought to date from the period between 267 and 396 CE.[1]
Biblical reference
The apostle Paul is said in the Book of Acts to have visited a synagogue in Athens.[3] The identity of that synagogue cannot be firmly established.[4]
See also
References
- ^ a b Urman, Dan; McCracken Flesher, Paul Virgil (1998). Ancient Synagogues: Historical Analysis and Archaeological Discovery. BRILL. pp. 125ff.
- ^ Hachlili, Rachel (1998). Ancient Jewish Art and Archaeology in the Diaspora. BRILL. p. 323.
- ^ Acts 17:17
- ^ Bruce, Frederick Fyvie (1988). The Book of the Acts. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. p. 329.