Bidspirit auction | Booklet published on the occasion

Booklet published on the occasion of the jubilee celebrations of the Old Main Synagogue in Munich - a few months before its destruction by the Nazis. Munich, 1937 - Festgabe. 50 Jahre Hauptsynagoge München, 1887–1937 - Jubilee booklet published on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Main Synagogue of Munich, edited by Dr. Leo Baerwald and Dr. Ludwig Feuchtwanger, on behalf of the Jewish community of Munich. Issued a few months before the synagogue’s destruction by the Nazis (1938). August, 1937. German. The booklet includes the program of the event held on the eve of Rosh Hashanah between the afternoon and evening services: a sermon, musical performance, an address by the head of the community, and selected Psalms. Throughout, the booklet documents the history of the synagogue from its establishment in September 1887, its architectural structure, the development of the Jewish community around the synagogue since that time, and provides important information on the rabbis and leaders of the community, as well as on Munich Jewry in the centuries preceding the construction of the synagogue. It is accompanied by interior and exterior photographs of the building. “This modest commemorative volume... is not intended to be, nor can it be, a scholarly historical work. Rather, this small book seeks to offer a glimpse into the character of a community which, in many respects, may be regarded as typical of Jewish communities in the German lands...” (from the introduction). Among the contributors who dedicated sections to the booklet: Rabbi Dr. Leo Baerwald, Dr. Werner Kahnmann, Prof. Emanuel Kirschner, and others. The editors relied on materials found in the Munich City Hall, mainly dating from the years 1915–1917. The Old Main Synagogue of Munich (German: Alte Hauptsynagoge München) stood on Herzog-Max-Straße in the heart of Munich. In June 1938, five months before Kristallnacht, the building was among the first synagogues in Germany to be destroyed. The structure, which stood out as a solitary monumental building surrounded by three streets, was designed by the architect Albert Schmidt. Its powerful appearance, as well as its prominent location in the city center, underscored its importance as a public building in Munich’s urban life at the time. The destruction of the main synagogue in Munich in June 1938 was not part of a spontaneous outbreak of violence, but a carefully planned operation carried out at the direct initiative of the Nazi regime and with the approval of Adolf Hitler, as a harbinger of what was to come. The building, which had been a central symbol of Jewish presence in the city since 1887, was demolished under the cynical pretext of “urban planning considerations, ” but in reality it was a clear ideological act—the public erasure of Jewish visibility from central Munich. The event took place several months before Kristallnacht, and the fact that the demolition was carried out in broad daylight, by official means and without any attempt at concealment, underscores how little the regime felt the need to disguise its intentions. 78 [10] pages. Stains on the cover. Good condition.