Romanesque Window at the Mikvah in Speyer
I didn’t know what to expect when I found out that there was a Jewish Court here in the city of Speyer. The Jewish Court is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site together with the other ShUM cities of Worms and Mainz. I don’t know much about Jewish culture so I was a bit curious as to what is there to see. I understand that this structure is also very old so there might not be much to see anyway. There is opening outside the museum which leads below ground. I wasn’t sure if this was originally like this or it has been built over like some old cities in Europe.
Spiral Staircase Going Down the Mikvah in Speyer
The stairs actually go quite deep that I was thinking that this has to be the original design because of the depth. There is some sort of structure below which is called a mikvah. A mikvah is a bath which is used to cleanse a person to achieve purity. I have heard of ritual cleansing using water and it is used in various cultures. I was surprised to know that Speyer has one which is preserved. Curiously, the mikvah has a window above the water which can allow people to see what is going on. The window is designed in romanesque style, which I suspect is a popular style that time. The stairs keep going down and it reminds me of going down to the dungeon of a castle.
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