Until the end of the 18th century, Jews were forbidden to reside in Moscow. In the early 1800's, a small number of Jews were permitted to reside in the city. By 1858, there were about 500 residents in the Moscow district. Thereafter, the flow of settlers increased rapidly and by 1890, 35,000 Jews resided in the city. However, in 1891, a substantial expulsion of Jews was initiated which ultimately resulted in the removal from Moscow of about 30,000 persons.
After the outbreak of World War I, a stream of Jewish refugees began to arrive in Moscow from German-occupied regions. In a short time, Moscow became a major Jewish center. By 1940, the Jewish population was estimated to be 400,000. Although the registered Jewish population in 1959 was about 225,000, it is estimated that the real Jewish population at that time was about 500,000, since many Jews declared their nationality as Russian rather than Jewish for census purposes.
The Great Synagogue, a 15 minute walk from Red Square, is the main synagogue in Moscow. The white stone, Byzantine style building was opened in 1891 during the expulsion of the Jews described above. Soon thereafter, the Synagogue was closed and its dome removed. After the 1917 Revolution, the Synagogue was reopened and has remained open since that time. Located on a small cobblestone street, the Synagogue has an exterior series of Greek columns. The main sanctuary seats more than 1,000, and the ark has framing columns and a gabled superstructure.
On September 7, 1970, Israel issued a stamp depicting the Great Synagogue. Below are the stamp, souvenir sheet and first day cover. The first day cover was sent to Moscow, but as indicated by a note from the Haifa Postmaster attached to the cover, the cover was returned from Moscow without a postmark due to the political relationship between Israel and Russia at the time. As per the cancellation on the back of the cover, the cover was returned to Haifa from Moscow on November 15, 1970.
Stamp
Souvenir Sheet
First Day Cover
Encyclopedia Judaica, CD-Rom Edition, Keter Publishing
Carole Herselle Krinsky, Synagogues of Europe, P.221-22
Philatelic Judaica Journal, Vol. VI, No.4, P. 944-45
Copyright © 1998-99 Edward Victor
