25 years ago, a new synagogue was opened in Liberec

Prague - The only newly built synagogue on the territory of the Czech Republic since the Second World War was opened in Liberec on November 9, 2000. The Jewish prayer room is part of the Regional Scientific Library, which is referred to as a Building of Reconciliation. It was co-funded by, among others, the Czech-German Future Fund and the German government.

The modern building of the library, made of glass and metal, costing more than half a billion crowns, comes from the studio of Liberec architect Radim Kousal. The library as an institution stands on the foundations of Czech and German librarianship in Liberec. It houses the original collections of both the former Czech and former German libraries that were in Liberec in the first half of the last century. One of the most recognized buildings in recent years (it received the Building of the Year title in 2001) stands on the site where one of the largest synagogues in Central Europe was located until 1938.

The building from 1899 with a 39-meter high tower was one of the city's dominant structures at the time. It was a joint construction, funded by all the churches in the city as well as the city council. It was burned down by the Nazis during the Kristallnacht.