Lost Treasures: The Wooden Synagogues of Eastern Europe The Artwork of Bill Farran

Smotrich, Ukraine - Original Linocut

Yiddish name: Smotritch

By the beginning of the 18th century there was a Jewish community in Smotrich. A large synagogue, noted for its beauty, was built there in the 18th century. The town was part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth until 1795 when it was incorporated into the Russia Empire.

When Smotrich became part of the Soviet Union after World War I, all Jewish schools were closed, and teaching in Hebrew was prohibited. However, local Jews kept studying with Torah tutors illegally until the middle of the 1920s. In 1925, a cell of “Hashomer-Hatzair” (Socialist-Zionist, secular Jewish youth movement) of about sixty people was established in Smotrich, which maintained a clandestine connection with its central branch in Kamenets-Podolsky. By the end of 1927, five people were arrested in the town, with the majority being leaders of “Hashomer-Hatsair” and 33 Jewish pupils were expelled from school “for being members of the Zionist organization”.

Smotrich was occupied by German troops on July 9th, 1941 and was liberated by the Soviet troops on March 27th, 1944. During the Holocaust 670 Smotrich Jews were murdered.

Purchase a print

Original linocut prints are 8x10 inches, and are available either unmatted or in an 11x14 matte.

I also offer matted 5x7 digital prints. These prints are created from high-res digital images and come in an 8x10 matte.