This place simply took our breath away. It is a delightful historically valuable town to visit. And so unexpected.
Besalu had a large, thriving Jewish population but they fled the town in 1436 after relentless Christian persecution. They left behind a mikve (ritual bath) dating from the 12th century, a rare survivor of its kind in Spain, which was only discovered in 1964. It sits down by the river inside a vaulted stone chamber, around which the remnants of the 13th century synagogue were unearthed during excavations in 2005.
Wish we were with you. A lovely spot. I didn't know Jews had baths.
ReplyDeleteMikve is only for women. They were to cleanse themselves after menstruation or there was to be no sex. I understand some women put off visiting the mikve :-) Nikki
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