In the second half of August 2026, the Center for Jewish Art of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, together with the United Jewish Community of Ukraine, conducted a research expedition to the historic synagogues of Podolia.
As part of the expedition, researchers visited more than 30 synagogues in settlements across historic Podolia. The buildings were surveyed, their current condition and the degree of preservation of their historic architecture were documented. Wherever possible, expedition participants also examined the synagogues from the inside and documented surviving elements of their interiors.
The expedition is part of a large-scale research project by the Center for Jewish Art devoted to the synagogues of Podolia. Materials collected during the field research will be used to prepare a fundamental work on the history and architecture of the synagogues of this historic region of Ukraine, “Synagogues of Ukraine: Podolia,” to be published by the Center for Jewish Art.
For decades, the Center for Jewish Art of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem has conducted systematic research and documentation of Jewish material heritage in Ukraine and other countries around the world.
One result of this work was the publication in 2017 of the fundamental two-volume work “Synagogues in Ukraine: Volhynia” (“Synagogues of Ukraine: Volhynia”), authored by Center researchers Sergey Kravtsov and Vladimir Levin.
The two-volume, 848-page publication is devoted to the history and architecture of the synagogues of historic Volhynia. It contains 1,220 color and black-and-white photographs, architectural surveys, drawings, and maps. The study documents 39 surviving synagogues and 302 lost synagogues in 23 cities and towns of the region. The publication was prepared by the Center for Jewish Art of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
A separate area of the Center’s work is the Bezalel Narkiss Index of Jewish Art and Material Culture.
This is the world’s largest systematic digital database documenting Jewish art and material culture. As of today, the Index contains more than 632,000 images documenting more than 57,000 objects: synagogues and their architecture, ritual objects, manuscripts, works of visual art, ancient art monuments, and other components of Jewish material heritage.
The joint expedition of the Center for Jewish Art and the United Jewish Community of Ukraine in Podolia continues systematic work to research, document, and preserve information about Ukraine’s Jewish architectural heritage.
Presented here are photographs of the synagogues visited, taken by Vladimir Levin.
