Rabat – An expedition team of Moroccan, French, and Israeli archeologists succeeded in unearthing ruins of a synagogue in the Atlas mountains, revealing remnants of Morocco’s Jewish community.
The team excavated ruins of the synagogue in a small town at the foot of the Atlas mountains bordering the Sahara.
The synagogue adds to an existing body of evidence suggesting the town was home to a Jewish community known as Tamanart between the 16th and 19th centuries.
Researchers unearthed scriptures, ritual artifacts, amulets -religious charms that protect their holders from bad luck-, and other items. Some had significant damage likely caused by natural factors and looting.
The researchers located the synagogue after conducting field research, including interviews with locals who offered information about their Jewish neighbors. The locals estimated their Jewish neighbors migrated from the area about 70 years ago.
The salvaged texts were then transferred to research centers in Morocco to piece together the scripts using artificial intelligence.
With royal sponsorship, the researchers are now following leads to locate and interview people with ties to the Jewish community who once lived in the same village. Researchers are hoping for help in reconstructing the texts.
Setting eyes on a nearby village next, the excavation will be widened to the whole region. The goal is to find more evidence and further map the history of the Jewish community in the region.
Located on the outskirts of Ifrane, a small village is thought to be home to some of the most ancient Jewish communities in North Africa and the oldest one in Morocco.
In recent years, Morocco took multiple measures to revive and showcase its Jewish heritage on the legislative and academic levels. In the 2011 constitution, Morocco recognized Jewish heritage as part of its national identity.
Many doctorate dissertations focusing on Morocco’s Jewish heritage were published in recent years, showcasing Morocco’s growing interest in valuing its Jewish heritage.
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