THE QUESTION OF THE SYNAGOGUE: THE PROBLEM OF TYPOLOGY

As an undergraduate majoring in archaeology at the Hebrew Univer­ sity of Jerusalem in the mid-1970s, I was taught that the ancient synagogues of Palestine (or, rather, the land of Israel) could be neatly divided into a tripartite typology. This typology was passed down from E.L. Sukenik, who established it, to successive generations of archaeology students at the Hebrew University; Sukenik’s son, Y. Yadin, was one of my professors at the Institute of Archaeology. This typology divides the synagogues of Palestine dating from the second or third to sixth centuries3 into three successive architectural groups or types. The earliest group, described as “Galilean” and dated to the second-third centuries, is characterized by the following features: a basilical plan; a large, decorated facade (usually with three doors, but sometimes with only one) in the wall facing Jerusalem; richly carved stone reliefs; a flagstone floor; and no set place for the Torah ark or shrine. The synagogues at Capernaum, Chora/in, and Kfar Baram are examples of the “Galilean” type. The second group, described as “transitional,” is dated to the fourth century and is characterized by a broadhouse plan, with the doorways in one of the narrow walls and a fixed place for the Torah ark in the Jerusalemoriented wall; a decline in carved stone relief decoration; the appear-