ZION SYNAGOGUE, PLOVDIV

The Zion Synagogue stands where another synagogue may have been erected as early as 1711. It is difficult to spot as it is in a courtyard surrounded by modern buildings. The synagogue is unremarkable on the outside, but once you enter you will be struck by its intricately-carved wooden Aron HaKodesh, as well as by its frescoes, restored in the 2000s with donations from the US Commission for the Preservation of American Heritage Abroad. In its yard there is a midrash and a plaque celebrating the Jews who fell in the Communist resistance of 1941-1944. The synagogue usually holds services on the Sabbath and religious holidays.