Museum Judengasse

Just as the City of Frankfurt wants to construct a new public utility company building in 1987, it discovers the foundation of several houses of the former Judengasse (Jews Lane) – Europe’s oldest Jewish ghetto. Public debate followed, resulting in part of the archaeological finds being made into a museum. This museum was redesigned in 2016 and awarded the museum prize of the Savings Banks Association Hesse-Thuringia’s cultural foundation.

The entrance to the museum and start of the permanent exhibition makes reference to the eventful past of this historical place. It reminds visitors of the deportation of Frankfurt Jews and the destruction of the Börneplatz synagogue, while also bringing the second oldest Jewish cemetery north of the Alps, accessible via the museum, into view.

The exhibition amidst the ruins of five Judengasse houses offers different perspectives of Jewish everyday life in the early modern period with a display of ritual objects and everyday items once produced or used in this area.

Barrier-free access and on location offerings: The Museum Judengasse features barrier-free access and offers visually impaired visitors their own audio tour through the exhibition. In addition to an introductory film, the museum offers several audio stations throughout the exhibition tour. Hands-on stations and the exhibition’s own catalogue invite children to become detectives on an investigative walk through the ruins.