The Great Synagogue in Pilsen, built in 1893, is the third largest in Europe

Prague – One of the dominant features of the industrial and brewing city of Plzeň, alongside the Cathedral of St. Bartholomew dating back to the late 13th century, is the Great Synagogue located on Pětatřicátníků Street. This Jewish sanctuary, which with a capacity of over 2000 visitors is the third largest synagogue in Europe and clearly the largest in the Czech Republic, served the faithful for less than 50 years. The city's Jewish community was decimated primarily by the Nazi Holocaust, but also by the subsequent 40 years of communist dictatorship. The monumental building, with two 45-meter towers and a three-nave layout, was constructed between 1890 and 1893 from voluntary donations from the Jews of Plzeň and is now reopening after an expensive three-year renovation.

The synagogue, which measures 57 meters in length, 30 meters in width, and has a vault height of 16 meters, was ceremonially consecrated on September 7, 1893. Its facade is dominated by two octagonal towers topped with onion domes and gilded six-pointed stars. Above the trio of entrance doors is a triangular pediment with a six-part window in the stucco pattern of the Star of David, topped by a canopy with a stone Ten Commandments. The interior of the synagogue is adorned with painting featuring plant motifs and also includes double-winged organs from 1890 as well as a unique hot air heating system beneath the floor. In the courtyard stands a two-story rabbi's house built in the Neo-Romanesque style.

The growing Plzeň Jewish community originally planned to build an even more majestic synagogue at the end of the 19th century. On the land purchased in 1874, Vienna architect Max Fleischer designed a building in the Nordic Gothic style, featuring two slender towers that would rise 65 meters. However, the city council at the time rejected the project, officially stating that the towers were too tall and competed inappropriately with the tower of St. Bartholomew's Church. The council also rejected the style of the building, as it seemed too similar to the style of Christian churches. According to the Plzeň encyclopedia, the proposed construction that resembled Fleischer's Vienna synagogue was also deemed too expensive.

New plans from local Plzeň builder Emanuel Klotz in 1890 retained the floor plan and overall concept of the building, but the architectural style changed and the towers were reduced in height by 20 meters. This project also incorporated elements of Romanesque style, with everything decorated in oriental ornaments. Since the opening of the synagogue in 1893, when Plzeň had about 50,000 inhabitants, out of which over 2,500 were Jews, the synagogue served its purpose until the Holocaust, with services continuing until 1941. Similar to other synagogues, the Nazis aimed to destroy the Plzeň synagogue, but its location between two houses and the fact that it served as a storage site for confiscated Jewish property likely saved it from destruction.

The synagogue functioned as a storage depot for furniture from deported Jews and later housed a workshop that sewed uniforms for German soldiers. During the liberation of Plzeň by the American army in May 1945, the synagogue was significantly damaged by gunfire, as its towers were used by German soldiers. After the war, the synagogue was returned to the Jewish religious community, which, however, was significantly decimated after the wartime tribulations. Under the communist regime, it was closed, and until 1973, only a smaller prayer hall in the deteriorating synagogue was used for services, which otherwise served as a storage for furniture from decommissioned sacred buildings in the region.

After 1989, representatives of the Plzeň Jewish community in the USA requested contributions for renovation, but their efforts were unsuccessful. In 1992, the synagogue was declared a cultural monument, and a turning point for the better came in 1995 when work began on repairing the building's outer shell over a two-year period. In February 1998, the synagogue was opened to the public, and in September of the same year, the first service in many years was held in the synagogue. The synagogue as a whole served as a center for cultural events. The now-completed renovation began in 2019 and was delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic.