Updated: Aug 3, 2020
Gėlių str. 6 Zavl’s Kloyz
The synagogue on Gėlių street dates back to 1817, when the wealthy merchant and philanthropist Samuel Zanvil, son of Pesah Germaize, known as Reb Zavl, first established a prayer house in a wooden building on the site. In 1817, this building burnt down; a year later Zavl Germaize and his son-in-law David Levinson donated the whole courtyard to the worshippers, who promised to build there ‘a prayer house with a kloyz’- a synagogue with a ‘closed’ centre for continuous prayer and study. Zavl’s Kloyz soon took a prominent place among the Vilnius’ synagogues.
In 1921, Khaykl Lunski (ca 1881-1942/3) called it ‘one of the largest and most important’ kloyzes in Vilnius. In 1916, there were 120 regular worshippers whose number increased to 192 by 1923. In addition, the kloyz possessed a house at 5 Sodų Street, which provided an income for its upkeep. The synagogue was renovated and expanded in 1892-93 and in 1896.
It operated until 1940. It’s said that it was the first stop for Jews arriving in Vilnius by train from all points in Lithuania. After World War II, it housed storage facilities, apartments and a bakery. From 1990 it stood abandoned. With the support of both the Lithuanian Ministry of Culture and the Goodwill Foundation, major restoration works are now underway. Work on the exterior of the building is near completion; the interior, however, still requires major reconstruction.
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