Spain: Lorca's Medieval Synagogue Excavation Unharmed in Earthquake

Lorca, Spain. Two views of synagogue excavation with protective covering. Photos: Samuel Gruber, 2009.

Spain: Lorca's Medieval Synagogue Excavation Apparently Unharmed in Earthquake

by Samuel D. Gruber

According to friends in Lorca, the medieval synagogue was not damaged in yesterday's earthquake. That sounds odd to report, since the building is already a ruin. It was meticulously excavated over several seasons a few years ago. I've written about the excavation and the accompanying exhibition before. I am sure that the site will have to be carefully examined, but there were few tall elements to be weakened. The new protective cover over the site will need to be checked.

There were deaths reported in the southern Spanish town, and damage to the historic city town center. I'll post more news from Lorca and Murcia when I receive it.

The exhibition Lights of Sepharad was recently on view until March 27th at the city of Roman Theater Museum in Cartagena. Hopefully it was all securely packed at the time of the quake. Pieces of more than fifty glass synagogue oil lamps were found in the exhibition, and many of these were painstakingly reconstructed at the Archaeological Museum in Lorca.