Comtadin Jewish Museum and Old Synagogue of Cavaillon

Located in the heart of the former Cavaillon quarry, the Comtadin Jewish Museum takes place in a highly original and remarkably preserved synagogue. This rare monument testifies to the singular history of the Pope's Jews and to the Jewish presence in Comtat Venaissin.

The architectural formula of the Comtadine synagogues, preserved only in Cavaillon and Carpentras, is unique in the world. It gives the site exceptional heritage value, at the crossroads of the religious, urban and cultural history of Provence.

A place of memory, transmission and discovery, this former synagogue today makes it possible to approach a little-known heritage, in a space that is at once moving, scholarly and profoundly unique.

From 1452, Jews were forced to live in closed neighborhoods in four cities, Avignon, Carpentras, Cavaillon and L'Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, sometimes symbolically brought closer to the four holy cities of Israel.

In Cavaillon, the community gathered in a cul-de-sac in the old center, the current Hebrew street, formerly closed by a wall and a door. This organization, specific to the Pope's Jews, lasted until the French Revolution and the opening of careers in 1791.

Today, Cavaillon is the only city that still preserves the legible memory of its career, which gives the site a very particular heritage and historical value.

A rare interior organization, between Baroque and Comtadine traditions

An essential part of the fund comes from the genizah, a kind of cemetery for books and objects of worship, discovered in the roof of the synagogue during the restoration work of 1929-1930. These exceptional finds have been preserved thanks to the care of the Jouve family.

In addition to these liturgical manuscripts and prints, there are furniture, objects of worship, doors from the tabernacle of the early synagogue, funerary steles from the ancient cemetery and numerous donations or acquisitions that have enriched the collections over time.

The visit thus makes it possible to better understand the religious, social and cultural life of a unique Provençal Jewish community, in a place where the collections dialogue directly with the original architecture.

The visit also offers the opportunity to observe elements rarely preserved elsewhere, such as the ritual bakery in the lower room or even certain liturgical devices specific to Comtadine synagogues.

A ritual bath, or mikveh, is also kept under an old house next to the synagogue. Classified as a Historic Monument, it is however not accessible to the public for security reasons.

A rare heritage site in the heart of the ancient center