Synagogue

Ostroh Synagogue is one of the largest synagogues in Eastern Europe. The architectural monument, built in the 16th century, served a cult and educational function for several centuries and was the center of the Jewish community not only in Ostroh, but also in the whole of Volyn. Worship services and gatherings of the Jewish community were held here, as well as children’s education and trials.

At the synagogue in the sixteenth and eighteenth centuries there was a higher Talmudic school – Yeshibot, and the most prominent figure was Samuel Edels, who at his own expense renovated the synagogue. Since then, the Jewish community center in Ostroh has been named in honor of the interpreter and rabbi Marshue.

During the Soviet era, the synagogue was not used as a religious building, but was converted into a warehouse. For many years the building was in disrepair. A representative of the city’s Jewish community, philanthropist Hryhoriy Arshinov, undertook an ambitious project to restore it in 2016. In 2018, a mezuzah was installed on the gate of the Great Synagogue – a special amulet that gives holiness to the building. Restoration work at the expense of patrons continues today