Art information

  • Creator: Maurycy Gottlieb
  • Date Created: 1878
  • Physical Dimensions: 243 X 190cm
  • Rights: Gift of Sydney J. Lamon, New York, through AICF, 1955 © Tel Aviv Museum of Art Photo: Avraham Hai
  • Medium: Oil on canvas

The painting depicts a scene from Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, when Jews gather in synagogues to pray and seek forgiveness. In the painting, the solemn atmosphere is conveyed through the use of dark colors and the intense expressions of the praying figures. The central figure, dressed in white, is likely the prayer leader, while the others are depicted in traditional Jewish dress. The painting captures the spiritual intensity and communal aspect of Yom Kippur, as well as the role of the synagogue as a center of Jewish religious life. "Jews Praying in the Synagogue on Yom Kippur" is considered a masterpiece of Jewish art and an important cultural artifact of the Jewish people.