Synagogue Southwestern Benches

Synagogue Southwestern Benches

View of the benches in the southwestern corner of the synagogue.  In the back right of the image is a special room of the synagogue where fragments of scrolls were found in two pits.  Possibly it was a Geniza.  The columns of course supported the roof.


This building was originally built during King Herod's reign (37–4 BC) and was used as a stable.  It was converted into a synagogue during the Great Revolt (AD 66–73). Fragments of Ezekiel and Deuteronomy were found under the floor of the back room.  It is one of the few synagogues that date to the end of the Second Temple Period.