Ohel Leah Synagogue
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Ohel Leah Synagogue | |
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בית הכנסת אהל לאה Beit Ha-Knesset Ohel Leah 猶太教莉亞堂 | |
Religion | |
Affiliation | Judaism |
District | Mid-Levels |
Region | Hong Kong Island |
Location | |
Country | Hong Kong |
Architecture | |
Architect(s) | Leigh & Orange |
Style | Colonial Sephardic |
Groundbreaking | 1901 |
Completed | 1902 |
Ohel Leah Synagogue | |
---|---|
Hanyu Pinyin | Yóutài Miào |
Yue: Cantonese | |
Yale Romanization | Yàuh taai miuh |
Jyutping | Jau4 taai3 miu6 |
The Ohel Leah Synagogue (
Most of Hong Kong's Jews live only a short distance away from the Synagogue, which sits at the junction of Robinson Road and Castle Road. An example of Colonial Sephardic architecture, the two-storied, whitewashed, multi-turreted Synagogue nestles amid the soaring high-rises of steel and glass perched on the Mid-Levels of Hong Kong Island. The Synagogue was designed by the architects Leigh & Orange and was erected in 1901–1902.[1] It underwent a US$6 million restoration in 1998 which returned its interiors and exteriors to their original state.
The name Ohel Leah commemorates Leah Sassoon, the mother of the
Ohel Leah is a
Conservation
The historic Synagogue was first listed as a Grade I historic building in July 1987. By December 1987, the listing was voluntarily removed as there was talk of demolishing the building.[2] In order to provide the building with immediate protection against demolition, the Antiquities Authority of the Hong Kong Government declared it a proposed monument.[3] Ohel Leah Synagogue was consequently saved based on a preservation arrangement agreed between Government and the owner.[4] It has been again a Grade I historic building since 1990.[5][6] Its renovation in 1998 obtained the Outstanding Project Award of the 2000 UNESCO Asia Pacific Heritage Awards for Culture Heritage Conservation.[7]
See also
- Ohel Rachel Synagogue, built by the Sassoon family in Shanghai
References
- ^ Antiquities and Monuments Office: Brief Information on Proposed Grade 1 Items. Item #41. Archived October 16, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Rebuilding the past - The conservation of Ohel Leah
- ISSN 1816-9554. Retrieved 11 January 2014.
- ^ "Declaration of Ho Tung Gardens at 75 Peak Road as a Proposed Monument under the Antiquities and Monuments Ordinance". Legislative Council Brief, January 2011.
- ^ List of the Historic Buildings in Building Assessment (as of 23 November 2011) Archived September 22, 2013, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Report No. 60 of the Director of Audit, Chapter 1: "Conservation of monuments and historic buildings", 28 March 2013.
- ^ Lyons, Erica (August 2011). "The Ohel Leah Synagogue, Hong Kong". Museum of the Jewish People. Retrieved 26 April 2022.
- Leah Krakinowski, Can $150 Million Preserve Hong Kong's Jews, Moment, August 1997, pp. 52–7, 91.