MIKWE - JEWISH BATHS

The Jewish ritual baths (the Mikwe) of Speyer date from 1128, and are in an excellent state of preservation. The pit is located 10 m underground; it is reached by a small stone staircase, which plunges into the cool and humid depths of the baths. The adjoining synagogue did not resist the great fire of 1689 (the same one that destroyed the cathedral); only a few sections of the walls remain. The Jewish community of Speyer is rebuilding today, with the arrival of Russian-Germans; there are 80 of them.