The Mikveh Israel Synagogue in Willemstad and the Jewish Life of Curaçao
The Mikveh Israel synagogue of Curaçao, a Dutch-controlled island in the Caribbean sea, was built on a prominent street near the main merchant area of the central city of Willemstad. The Snoa, as the building is lovingly referred to in the local Papiamento language, was not hidden behind a wall or down a dark alley. Instead, it was a prominent feature of everyday life on the island and appears here as number 19 on the map’s key. This reflects the high degree of integration of the Spanish-Portuguese Jews on the island.
Credits
© National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, London.
Discussion Questions
Find three synagogues in your location or research past synagogues in your area. What can you learn about the Jewish community based on the public setting of the synagogue?
Find two other early American synagogue buildings. What similarities and differences do you see between them? Some examples: Touro Synagogue in Newport, RI; Nidhei Israel, Bridgetown, Barbados; Mikveh Israel, Savannah, GA.
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Sephardic traders made Atlantic networks from Amsterdam to the Caribbean, building distinctive synagogues and thriving communities shaped by trade and slavery.