Studies of the interior of Plymouth Synagogue, August 1830, by Solomon Alexander Hart, RA (1806-1881)

Studies of the interior of Plymouth Synagogue

Solomon Alexander Hart, RA (1806-1881)

August 1830

Pencil on cream wove paper

252 mm X 168 mm

Collection of the Royal Academy of Arts

Object number 03/7334

Bequeathed by Richard Phené Spiers, 1916

Plymouth Synagogue, built between 1761-63, is one of the oldest in Britain, and (according to the synagogue's own website) is "the oldest Ashkenazi Synagogue still in regular use in the English-speaking world." [Commentary continues below.]

Image capture, formatting and comment by Jacqueline Banerjee.

Image reproduced here by kind permission of the Royal Academy. [Click on image to enlarge it, and mouse over the text for links.]

The Royal Academy's commentary informs us that Hart's grandfather Henry Hart had come from Anspach in Bavaria and had settled in Plymouth around 1755, achieving success as a rum merchant and, in time, attending the new Synagogue. Hart would have known it well. He made these sketches on a visit to his hometown in August 1830. "At the top of the sheet are two sketches of the carved wooden barriers of the sanctuary area (or bimah) while the drawing below depicts a man looking over the walls of the Plymouth 'Barbican'" ("Studies of the Interior...").

Bibliography

Plymouth's Orthodox Synagogue. Web. 13 September 2018.

"Studies of the Interior of the Plymouth Synagogue, August 1830. Royal Academy. Web. 13 September 2018.

Valentine, Helen. "Hart, Solomon Alexander (1806–1881), historical genre painter." Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Online ed. Web. 13 September 2018.

Created 13 September 2018