Moscow Guide
The Beliy Gorod
The Choral Synagogue
Address: Ulitsa Zabelina slopes down to the Kitay-gorod, off which is a steep, narrow lane called Spasoglinishchevskiy pereulok, where the Choral Synagogue is located
Opening time: Mon– Fri 10am–6pm
The Choral Synagogue'slocation just behind, but not visible from, a major thoroughfare reflects the ambivalent status of Moscow's Jewish community when the synagogue was built in 1886 (financed by a railway tycoon, Polyakov). Only five years earlier, 20,000 Jews had been expelled to the Pale in the wave of reaction that followed the assassination of their emancipator, Alexander II. Yet the regime needed their skills and officials desired bribes, so Jews soon re-established themselves in the capital. By bribing Moscow's Governor, the community was later able to erect a Star of David above its synagogue, which could be seen over the rooftops – as Nicholas II was startled to notice as he drove by during his coronation in 1896.
The building's exterior is quite austere and gone to pot, but its interior is a lovely example of the Moorish style of synagogues across Eastern Europe, swirling with arabesque mouldings and murals, recently restored with funds from the city. Its rabbi is reportedly disgusted that none of the oligarchs who've attended the synagogue has ever donated anything, and Moscow's Orthodox Rabbinate resents the wealthier Lubavitch sect for trying to lure away its congregation. Ironically, the "Choral" designation of the Orthodox synagogue refers to the fact that it incorporates several shrines, for the use of Armenian, Georgian or Bukharan Jews visiting Moscow, allowing "many voices to sing in unison".