t The four synagogues that make up the Joods Historisch Museum
g OUDE ZIJDE g Contents
H6 ⌂ Nieuwe Amstelstraat 1 v 14 4 Nationale Opera & Ballet q Waterlooplein # 11am–5pm daily ¢ Yom Kippur and Jewish New Year ∑ jhm.nl
From the first Jews to arrive in Amsterdam to the preservation of Jewish identity today, this museum tells the turbulent history of the Jewish community in the Netherlands.
Experience Oude Zijde
t The four synagogues that make up the Joods Historisch Museum
This remarkable museum of Jewish heritage is housed in four monumental synagogues – the Grote Synagoge, Nieuwe Synagoge, Obbene Shul and Dritt Shul. Three permanent multimedia exhibitions present the history and culture of the Jewish people in the Netherlands through paintings, drawings, artifacts, photographs, films and 3D displays. In addition, there are temporary exhibitions and a Children’s Museum. This museum, the Portuguese Synagogue and the Hollandsche Schouwburg, form the Jewish Historical Quarter.
t The main entrance to the museum is through the stately Grote Synagoge.
The first Jew to gain Dutch citizenship was a member of the Portuguese Sephardic community in 1597. The Ashkenazi Jews from eastern Europe came to Amsterdam later, in the 1630s. They were restricted to working in certain trades, but were granted full civil equality in 1796. With the rise of Zionism in the 19th century, Jewish identity re-emerged, but the Nazi occupation almost obliterated the community.