Sinagoga di Vercelli

The Synagogue of Vercelli, designed by Marco Treves and inaugurated in 1878, is a monumental nineteenth-century building in the city's former ghetto quarter. Its Moorish-style façade is banded in white and blue and flanked by onion-domed towers.

Why it matters

The synagogue belongs to the generation of Italian Jewish temples built after emancipation, when communities expressed new civic status through monumental architecture. Its scale and location record the transformation of Vercelli's Jewish community after the ghetto was dissolved. It remains a place of worship and a landmark of Jewish history in the city.

What to notice

The exterior combines horizontal white and blue bands with two towers capped by onion domes. Inside, the hall is arranged in three naves and decorated with geometric patterns and stained glass. The building's Moorish Revival vocabulary contrasts with the surrounding urban fabric while reflecting architectural tastes of the late nineteenth century.

Context and history

The synagogue was built between 1874 and 1878 to a design by Marco Treves and inaugurated on 18 September 1878. Its construction followed the extension of civil rights to Jews in the Kingdom of Sardinia in 1848 and the dissolution of the ghetto. The community endured the fascist racial laws of 1938 and the German occupation. A later restoration addressed serious deterioration and returned the building to use.