Old Synagogue
Poland's oldest synagogue was built to survive a siege — and it outlasted one far worse than any medieval army.
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Dating to as early as 1407 and rebuilt in 1570 by Italian architect Mateo Gucci, this fortress synagogue on Szeroka Street is the oldest synagogue building still standing in Poland. In 1794 Kościuszko spoke here to rally Jewish support for his uprising. In 1939 the Nazis desecrated it; in 1943, 30 hostages were executed at its wall. Now a branch of the Historical Museum of Kraków, it holds exhibits on Jewish life from birth to death.
What to look for
- The 1570 attic wall with loopholes and heavy buttressing — military architecture details added by Mateo Gucci to let the building withstand siege
- The entrance hall plaque marking Kościuszko's 1794 address, quoting: "The Jews proved to the world that whenever humanity can gain, they would not spare themselves."
- The 17th-century Ezrat Nashim (women's prayer room)
Located at 24 Szeroka Street in the Kazimierz district; operates as a branch of the Historical Museum of Kraków.
Old Synagogue is one of 37 sights worth the detour in Krakow, all bundled offline in Voyage GO — download the Krakow pack and it sits on your map with no signal, filling your travel passport the moment you walk past.
More to see in Krakow
- Wieliczka Salt MineSeven centuries of miners carved chapels and statues out of grey rock salt — 327 metres underground.
- Wawel CathedralPolish kings were crowned here for centuries, and a young priest named Karol Wojtyła said his first Mass in its crypt on 2 November 1946 — thirty-two years before becoming Pope.
- Wawel Royal CastlePolish monarchs were crowned and buried here — the limestone hill above the Vistula is where a nation kept its memory.
- St. Mary's BasilicaEvery hour, a trumpeter plays from the taller tower and stops dead mid-note — commemorating a 13th-century trumpeter who was shot in the throat mid-signal before a Mongol attack on the city.
- Wawel CastlePolish monarchs were crowned and buried here — and their palace now holds Europe's largest collection of Ottoman tents.
- National Museum in KrakówPoland's largest museum holds 780,000 objects — and a Bruegel the Nazis stole in 1939 that never came back.