The Jewish Quarter is a labyrinth of alleys where the atmosphere of the Middle Ages comes to life. Since the 9th century, Jews began to settle here. Other townspeople envied their wealth and feared their knowledge, suspecting that Jews were sorcerers. In 1492, the Inquisition ravaged the quarter and the Jews were expelled from Barcelona. In the Jewish quarter you will find the old synagogue, the mysterious Alchemist's House and antique dealers. The narrow streets look the same as they did centuries ago.One of the main attractions of the Jewish Quarter of Barcelona is the Old Synagogue, which is considered the oldest in Europe. According to some reports, it was built in the ancient Roman period, and there is some Roman influence in the architecture of the synagogue.In the heart of Barcelona's Gothic Quarter, just off the popular pedestrianized La Rambla, is the ancient Jewish Quarter El Call. The main street of the Jewish Quarter was considered to be Carrer de Sant Domènec: kosher butchers' shops and houses of the most respected members of the Jewish community were located here.
El Call in its past was a Jewish Quarter, the name of the quarter comes from the Catalan language and means the place of residence of Jewish communities. The Jewish community of Barcelona was one of the largest communities in the region. The history of Jewish communities in Europe originated in the early Middle Ages and ended with the French Revolution. The last Jewish quarter in Europe that ceased to exist in 1870 was located in Rome. In Barcelona, the Jewish Quarter El Call was located in the heart of the Gothic Quarter.In the past, it was an active center of city life, nowadays El Call streets are calm and uncrowded places. About 5,000 Jews lived here. The place was surrounded by a rampart, which meant that El Call's space was limited. It was in connection with this fact that the buildings of the Jewish district grew upward, which gives the impression that El Call streets are narrower and darker in comparison with other streets of the Gothic Quarter.The Gothic Quarter in Barcelona gets its name from the surviving medieval buildings dating from the 14th to 15th centuries. Located between Plaza Catalunya and Calle Laietana, the Gothic Quarter, along with La Ribera and El Raval, is part of the Old Town.
Its intricate narrow streets and ancient architecture attract millions of tourists to Spain every year. In one of the shops in the area called Oliver you can also visit a very interesting historical monument - the perfectly preserved ruins of an ancient Jewish bath.
The main street in the Jewish quarter was the street that is currently called Sant Domènec del Call Many historical monuments have been preserved in the Jewish quarter. Here you can visit the Ancient Barcelona Synagogue - Synagogue Major, which is currently a museum with a rich collection of exhibits illustrating the history of the Jewish quarter.
