Beth Sholom Congregation (Elkins Park, Pennsylvania)
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Beth Sholom Synagogue
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| Location | 8231 Old York Road Elkins Park, Cheltenham Township, Pennsylvania, USA |
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| Coordinates | 40°4′56″N 75°7′36″W / 40.08222°N 75.12667°WCoordinates: 40°4′56″N 75°7′36″W / 40.08222°N 75.12667°W |
| Area | 3.9 acres (1.6 ha) |
| Built | 1954 |
| Architect | Frank Lloyd Wright |
| Architectural style | Modern |
| NRHP Reference # | 07000430 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | March 29, 2007 |
| Designated NHL | 2007-03-29 |
| Designated PHMC | September 21, 2008 |
Beth Sholom Congregation is a Conservative synagogue located in the Philadelphia suburb of Elkins Park, Pennsylvania. It is the only synagogue designed by famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Beth Sholom is Hebrew for House of Peace.
The building has been called a startling, translucent, modernist evocation of an ancient temple, transposed to a Philadelphia suburb by Frank Lloyd Wright.
In 2007, the building was named a National Historic Landmark:
"Beth Sholom Synagogue ... is a new National Historic Landmark because of its significance in the history of American architecture. The glazed glass pyramidal tower, built in the 1950s, reflects two dominant metaphors—the tent and the mountain—to convey the sense of a collective sacredness. It is nationally significant as one of Wright's most important commissions during his long and productive career."
The congregation originally established its synagogue in the Logan neighborhood of Philadelphia in 1919 but was one of the first congregations to move to the suburbs at its present home in the 1950s.
The building was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, who accepted the commission in September 1953. The building was completed and consecrated in 1959. With its steeply inclined walls of translucent fiberglass and plastic projecting skyward like a "luminous Mount Sinai" (Wright's own description), it has been cited as an example of the Mayan Revival architecture style. During the day, the interior is lit by natural light entering through the translucent walls overhead. At night, the entire building glows from interior artificial lighting.
In front of the synagogue, and separated from it by about 25 feet (7.6 m), is a laver or fountain. In ancient days, the laver (from the word "to lave" or "wash") was made of copper. In it worshipers would wash their hands before the sacrifice and service. The lovely fountain with flowing waters in front of the entrance is a symbol of the old laver and is also a symbol of purity upon entering religious worship.
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