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The oldest original synagogue building in the Diaspora: the Delos synagogue reconsidered

Hesperia, Fall, 2004 by Monika Trumper

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Although the architecture of each of these synagogues is fairly comprehensible within the larger local context, it is at the same time notably different and without precise parallel. Given the remarkably monumental scale of both buildings, the absence of features such as a courtyard or shops was, most probably, not due to a shortage of money or to external factors such as the limited size of the building plots, but to an intentional adaptation to the needs of a specific group, the respective Jewish or Samaritan community. One might extend this comparison to the question of the extent to which Jewish or Samaritan communities resembled voluntary associations in the Graeco-Roman world, and to what degree differences and similarities in the organization and structure of these communities were reflected in the form and function of the respective synagogues and meeting places, but such a comprehensive sociohistorical study is beyond the scope of this article. (163)

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According to the interpretation of GD 80 presented here, the small Aegean island of Delos provides a second, and even earlier (than that at Ostia), example of a Diaspora synagogue that was originally constructed as such, thereby offering the rare opportunity to study the design and development of an early synagogue. Its design corresponds to the specific nature of Jewish life in the Diaspora as recently described by Gruen: The building could well be interpreted as a negotiation between integration and segregation, between adaptation of local customs and consideration of Jewish needs. With their synagogue the Delian Jews or Samaritans might well have fitted within the world of Hellenistic and Imperial Delos while expressing and maintaining their own distinctiveness. (164)

FITTINGS OF GD 80

It is generally agreed that for Second Temple synagogues no specific fittings with Jewish symbols or elements are to be expected, especially not in the Diaspora, where Jews adapted to the regional and local culture, customs, and language. (165) Some features of GD 80, however, have always attracted special attention from supporters as well as opponents of its identification as a synagogue, namely the throne, the niche in room A, the votive offerings, and small finds such as lamps.

The marble throne (Fig. 22) is usually identified as the Cathedra of Moses; its importance would have been emphasized by placing it in the center of the west wall of A, facing the single east entrance (and Palestine). (166) If, however, the doorway between A and courtyard C was blocked from the beginning of the fifth phase, this privileged position never would have been visible from the outside (the courtyard) and probably would not have been readily evident from the interior of B, as none of the entrances to A from B offered a direct axial view of the throne. Yet regardless of its position, the probably prominent provenance of this throne, the distant theater, suggests that it was intended to serve a special function. (167)

The small niche in the west wall of A, 2.20 m north of the throne's current position (Fig. 22), is rarely mentioned in the literature. Binder conjectures that it might have served to store the sacred scrolls used in Sabbath services. (168) Within the Delian context, however, this niche, which was obviously created subsequent to the construction of the wall and is rather crudely made, is best explained as a place for a lamp. Since the lighting of this room could have been problematic in the evening and during the darker seasons, this function seems reasonable. (169)

The oldest original synagogue building in the Diaspora: the Delos synagogue reconsidered

Hesperia, Fall, 2004 by Monika Trumper

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