Museum Judenplatz

Museum Judenplatz is a compact museum in Vienna’s historic centre, at Judenplatz 8. Its central focus is the excavated remains of a medieval synagogue, reached from inside the museum, with augmented reality recreating the building as it stood in the Middle Ages. Displays and objects trace Jewish life in Vienna from Roman times through the medieval community’s history. Read the more detailed books set beside the exhibits, and look for the large Holocaust memorial in the square outside. One ticket also admits you to Vienna’s Jewish Museum on Dorotheergasse.

The synagogue beneath Judenplatz

The museum leads down to the excavated remains of a medieval synagogue. Its foundations give a view of the building’s physical traces, while augmented reality presents a reconstruction of the synagogue as it stood during the Middle Ages. The remains are reached from within the museum; the large Holocaust memorial is in the square above.

The site helps explain the history of Vienna’s early Jewish community. The museum’s displays place the medieval synagogue within a wider account of Jewish life in Vienna, beginning in Roman times.

Objects and further reading

Exhibits include objects from Jewish communities and material about the history of Jews in Vienna. Books placed beside the displays provide additional detail on subjects introduced in the exhibition. The museum is small, so these reading materials are a useful way to spend longer with the topics that interest you.

A ticket for Museum Judenplatz also covers the Jewish Museum at Dorotheergasse 11. The two locations address different parts of Vienna’s Jewish history: the Judenplatz museum focuses on the medieval community and the synagogue remains, while the main museum covers the history of the community during and after the Second World War.