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Synagogue Complex of Bova Marina

Description

History of the Synagogue

In 1983, the ancient synagogue’s ruins were inadvertently discovered by road workers while constructing a freeway overpass. It was presumed by first responding archeologists that the uncovered remains were traces of a Roman settlement, not uncommon in Italy’s southern region. Upon further inspection, superintendent of archeology for the Calabria region, Dr. Elena Lattanzi, noticed several distinct architectural as well as decorative deviations from typical Roman inhabitances, suggesting that the complex hosted a different community entirely.[2] The age and placement of Bova Marina revised and contradicted historians notions of a completely gentile Italian coast during the 4th and 5th centuries.[3] The complex at Bova Marina is imagined to have served as a waypoint for northern venturing Jews, expanding over time as more and more travelers began to linger on Italy’s amicable coast. The cause of the building’s destruction is as of yet unknown. One of the two reigning theories implores that the seizure of Italy by Germanic Goths in the mid 6th century empowered previously docile Christians to enact larger scale pogroms, destroying several synagogues, possibly including Bova Marina. Another theory postulates that the shale and clay bedrock underlying the Site at Bova Marina was extremely susceptible to liquifying during a seismic event.[4] If such a liquefication were to occur, the destruction wreaked would surely be enough to topple and bury the historic synagogue.[5]

The Jews of Bova Marina, throughout the 4th and 5th centuries, were subject to mass exodus and scrutiny. As rulers of different Italian regions capriciously changed their views on the Jewish people, the laws that acted upon them, prohibiting their ability to practice religion, build communities, and document their histories changed with unimaginable rapidity.[6] Under these conditions, the erection of the lost synagogue at Bova Marina appears even more impressive and its services more vital.

Although little is known about the original architecture of the synagogue at Bova Marina, through the processes of tireless excavation and corroboration, key elements of the building’s design have come into view. It is known that the synagogue was situated facing Jerusalem, symbolizing the hopes of Jews to one day return to the land from which they were exiled.[7] The mosaic floor, the synagogue’s most preserved feature, is divided into sixteen pieces and boasts a central decoration of interwoven blue and green tiles, a design commonly known as Solomon’s knot. Like most synagogues, Bova Marina is believed to have had a niche set aside for the storing of sacred Torah scrolls. The square shape of the building’s main hall is not uncommon for the era in which it was believed to have been constructed. Similar architectural stylings can be noticed in synagogues, dominantly found in Asia Minor, of a generation akin to that of Bova Marina.[8]

Update

Today, the surviving elements of the complex (mosaic floors, oil lamps, menorahs) are displayed at a museum neighboring the site of the synagogue’s original discovery.[9] Constructed In an era and region in which a resurgence in Jewish population lead to the establishment of various forms of Jewish governance and communities, Bova Marina continually offers researchers a base from which to study and piece together stories of Jewish migration to Italy and the greater European continent.[10] Recently, on June, fourth, twenty nineteen, Bova Marina served as the grounds for one of the first traditional Jewish weddings held in centuries. The newly converted couple thought Bova Marina a noble location for their archaic ceremonies, believing that their resurrection of ancient traditions might revitalize Bova Marina’s once-flourishing Jewish community.

Italy

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