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The oldest original synagogue building in the Diaspora: the Delos synagogue reconsidered
Hesperia, Fall, 2004 by Monika Trumper
The nature of the extension of the gneiss building to the south and east is unknown. The west wall of D1 becomes considerably thinner some 0.30 m south of the northwest corner, and although no clear joint can be discerned, the material and construction technique change visibly (Fig. 6). In addition, traces of stucco with a white finishing plaster are preserved on the south face of the north wall, in the joint with the west wall. Since this stucco begins at a height of about 1.40 m above today's floor level, originally it must have decorated the jamb of a window in the west wall whose dimensions cannot be reconstructed (Fig. 7). Both the change in building technique and the blocking of the window are, most probably, due to the renovation of the west wall in a later phase, when the building was extended to the south. Because the window was blocked, it does not seem likely that mere technical reasons were responsible for the reduction of the thickness of the west wall of D1. (25) This view is confirmed by the character of the east wall of D3, which also becomes thinner and was, judging from the material used and the construction technique, certainly remodeled at some point, though not at the same time as the west wall (see below, pp. 534-535).
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[FIGURES 6-7 OMITTED]
In short, even if issues involving the extension and layout of the southern part of the building remain open, it is certain at least that the building continued farther south and thus included the water reservoir under rooms B and D1. (26) In addition to the foregoing evidence, expansion is suggested by more fine white stucco on the exterior face of the south wall of B; (27) most probably this decoration dates to the first phase of use or at least to an early phase, because the later partition wall of D2/D3 abuts it (Fig. 8).
[FIGURE 8 OMITTED]
The position of the reservoir, partly under hall A/B and partly under D1, is quite unusual. Whether the location was a deliberate choice with regard to a specific function of the reservoir or was selected for merely practical reasons (28) cannot be determined with certainty, particularly because the exact size and layout of the original building and the possible influence of external factors (29) are unknown. In theory, the foundation of the predecessor wall in D1-D3, situated immediately south of the reservoir, might be identified as remnants of the original south facade; but given the reduced width, different material (granite), and the fact that the wall was not parallel to the north wall, such a reconstruction would hardly be convincing. (30)
The matter of the expansion of the building to the east is also open to speculation. It seems rather unlikely that the large hall was entered directly from some public space, street, or place. The idea of a colonnade in front of the building finds many parallels in Delos, but none involves such a long portico or is equipped with a stylobate, and certainly not a stylobate of marble. (31) A courtyard belonging to the building must have been defined and closed off by walls, but as the preserved north and south walls of courtyard C were certainly established in a later phase, only further excavation can clarify whether they simply replaced predecessors or were part of a later enlargement of the building.
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