Slonim Synagogue
Conservation Work
WMF began conservation work at Slonim in 2000, compiling an analysis of the site and outlining necessary conservation measures to ensure the building’s tectonic stability and the preservation of its interior decorative scheme. A WMF report, presented in 2001, emphasized serious structural deficiencies in the synagogue walls, which threatened to collapse, and highlighted the poor condition of the building surroundings, which were littered with debris. Additionally, the building’s roof, partially collapsed and at serious risk of further deterioration, required immediate attention. WMF’s analysis provided a blueprint for future conservation work at the site. In accordance with its findings, WMF began work to stabilize key structural walls in the early 2000s.
Importance as a Jewish Heritage Site
When it was built in the seventeenth century, Slonim was one of the region’s great synagogues, a monument to the thriving Jewish community in the area, and representative of rich, local cultural and aesthetic traditions. The synagogue is, to some, a grim reminder of a tragic history. Yet, Slonim remains one of the country’s great sacred structures.
WMF’s work at the site marks an effort to reassert the building’s historical, architectural, and symbolic relevance. By providing a plan for future work at Slonim, and enacting key structural interventions there, WMF has demonstrated its commitment to the conservation of the synagogue, and its belief in the building’s importance as a Jewish heritage site.
