Faro Jewish Heritage Centre
Rua Leao Penedo
Phone: ☎ 289829525
About
Faro Jewish Heritage Centre, Rua Leao Penedo (In fron of Faro Hospital), ☎ 289829525, [2]. 9.30-12.30 and 14.00-17.00. Oficially established in 1851, the Faro Jewish Cemetery is the only remaining vestige of the first post-Inquisition Jewish presence in Portugal. It served as a burial place for a thriving 60 family community (also known as "Little Jerusalem"). The Jews of Portugal fled the Inquisition from the end of the XVth century and settled in Gibraltar and North Africa. After the devastating 1755 Lisbon Earthquake their descendants have been invited by the Marquis of Pombal to help rebuild the economy. Although the community is long gone, the Cemetery still remains to remind citizens and travellers of its former glory. The Faro Jewish Heritage Centre features over one hundred graves in Sephardi style, with beautifully engraved slabs instead of headstones. Although the land has been purchased by the Jewish community in 1851, the first burial, that of Rabbi Toledano, dates back to 1838. Apart from the Cemetery, there is also a museum, housing many objects linked to the history of the Jews of Faro, like the furniture from one of the two non-existent synagogues of Faro or the facsimile copy of Gacon's 1478 Pentateuch in Hebrew - the first book ever printed in Portugal! free.
