Ben Ezra Synagogue

The Ben Ezra Synagogue is a historic synagogue in Old Cairo (Fustat), Egypt, notable as the site associated with the discovery of the Cairo Geniza, a large collection of medieval Jewish manuscript fragments. It is one of the oldest and most historically significant Jewish sites in Cairo’s Coptic quarter.

Visitors see the synagogue interior and courtyard and learn about the Geniza documents, many of which date from the medieval period and were uncovered in the late 19th century by scholars. The synagogue contains architectural elements and fittings that reflect its long use by the local Jewish community.

According to local tradition the Jewish community occupied the site in the medieval period; the synagogue became especially famous when scholars identified and catalogued the Geniza manuscripts in the 1890s. Many of the most important Geniza manuscripts were removed to libraries and research institutions outside Egypt for study.

The synagogue stands in Old Cairo near the Babylon Fortress area and the Coptic quarter, within the Giza Governorate region of greater Cairo.

• Cairo Geniza: The synagogue is famed for the Cairo Geniza, a huge cache of medieval Jewish manuscripts discovered in the late 19th century that transformed scholarship on medieval Jewish life in the Mediterranean and Near East.

What to See #

• Geniza storeroom: A storeroom where generations of discarded Hebrew and Judeo-Arabic manuscripts were kept before their discovery in the late 19th century; many of the original Geniza fragments are now held in libraries abroad.
• Synagogue interior: The synagogue interior and courtyard in Old Cairo, retaining historic fittings and the layout associated with medieval Jewish worship in the city.