Old Synagogue

Built in 1911 in the Jugendstil tradition, this synagogue is one of the largest surviving synagogue buildings in Germany and is listed as a protected architectural monument. During the November 1938 pogroms its interior was ransacked but the structure itself survived — an unusual fate among German synagogues of the era. After decades of disuse and various interim functions, a major restoration was completed in 2010 and the building reopened as a house of Jewish culture. It now hosts a permanent exhibition on the history of Jewish life in Essen alongside rotating shows on memory and contemporary history. The domed silhouette on Steeler Strasse remains a defining feature of central Essen.