Remuh Synagogue and Cemetery

In front of you is the smallest of Kazimierz's historic synagogues, and one of the few still open for worship. According to its foundation plaque, it was built in 1553 by Israel ben Joseph, a wealthy merchant and banker, with a bequest from his wife Malka. The first building was wooden and burned down in 1557; it was rebuilt in masonry the same year.

1The Rema

The synagogue is named after the founder's son, Moses Isserles, known by the acronym Rema, who was rabbi of Kraków and died in 1572. He wrote glosses on the Shulchan Aruch, the great code of Jewish law compiled by the Sephardi scholar Joseph Karo, adapting it to the customs of Ashkenazi Jews. His notes were called the Mappah, 'the tablecloth', because they covered Karo's 'set table'. Ever since, the two texts have been studied together all over the world.

2The cemetery

Beside the synagogue lies one of the oldest Jewish cemeteries in Poland, used from the 16th century until 1800, when the Austrian authorities closed it. It was devastated during the German occupation. During postwar restoration, fragments of broken gravestones were set into the inner wall, now known as Kraków's Wailing Wall. Isserles' grave, surrounded by a railing, draws pilgrims from all over the world.

On the gravestones you'll see small pebbles: by Jewish custom, visitors leave a stone instead of flowers.

3What to look for

• The Hebrew inscription above the entrance gate.
• The wall of gravestone fragments, if you go inside.
• The stones on the graves, a sign of remembrance and of a visit.