Heichal Shlomo

Heichal Shlomo
Hebrew: היכל שְׁלֹמֹה
Heichal Shlomo in 2009 (left),
with the Great Synagogue (right)
Heichal Shlomo is located in Jerusalem
Heichal Shlomo
Location of the synagogue in Jerusalem
Religion
AffiliationOrthodox Judaism
StatusActive
Location
LocationJerusalem
CountryIsrael
Coordinates31°46′32.84″N 35°13′0.88″E / 31.7757889°N 35.2169111°E / 31.7757889; 35.2169111
Architecture
ArchitectAlexander Friedman
TypeSynagogue architecture
Groundbreaking1953
Completed1958
DomeOne
Website
hechalshlomo.org.il

The Heichal Shlomo (Hebrew: היכל שְׁלֹמֹה, romanized: Heikhal Shlomo, lit. 'Palace of Solomon'; hence Hekhal of Solomon) is a building, which houses a synagogue, Jewish museum and teacher's college, located opposite the Leonardo Plaza Hotel, on King George Street, Jerusalem, Israel.

The building served as the seat of the Chief Rabbinate of Israel until 1992. It now serves as the Jerusalem Campus of Herzog College for their Masters in Education program,[1] and houses the Jewish Heritage Center and Museum of Jewish Art.

History

The building was erected between 1953 and 1958, following plans by German-born architect Alexander Friedman, and was formally dedicated in May 1958.[2]

The building has housed the Jewish Heritage Center and Jewish Art Museum since 1992.

The Renanim Synagogue was transferred from Padua together with its 18th-century Torah ark and bimah, and decorated with modern stained glass windows. The Entrance Gallery displays temporary exhibitions of Israeli artists. The museum displaying traditional and modern Jewish art in permanent and temporary exhibitions is named in honour of British Jewish philanthropist, Sir Isaac Wolfson.

Rabbi Yitzchok Zev Soloveitchik, the rabbi of Brisk, strongly discouraged entering the building, saying "every stone there is impure".[3]

In 2009, Pope Benedict XVI paid a courtesy visit to Heichal Shlomo, where he met with the two Chief Rabbis of Jerusalem.[4]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Hechal Shlomo: International Center for Jewish Heritage". Friends of Herzog College. n.d. Archived from the original on September 19, 2021. Retrieved September 20, 2024.
  2. ↑ Rosenbaum, Alan. "Herzog College: Leading the renaissance at Hechal Shlomo", The Jerusalem Post, January 7, 2021. Accessed June 9, 2026. "On Thursday, May 8, 1958, hundreds of dignitaries gathered to dedicate Hechal Shlomo, a stately new structure in Jerusalem’s Rehavia neighborhood, as the seat of Israel’s Chief Rabbinate and its Supreme Rabbinical Court.... Finally, in 1992, with the election of Rabbi Israel Meir Lau as Chief Rabbi, the Chief Rabbinate fell under the control of haredi elements. Rabbi Lau moved the offices of the Chief Rabbinate from Hechal Shlomo to the city entrance, says Brandes, because the building had been primarily identified with the religious Zionist movement."
  3. ↑ Meller, Shimon. HaRav MiBrisk - 4. Jerusalem. p. 401.
  4. ↑ "Text of Pope Benedict XVI's Address to Chief Rabbis of Jerusalem". Opus Dei. 2009.

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