Kahal Zur Israel Synagogue
In 1643, the City of Mauritius (now Recife) was the most beautiful and well-built city in Atlantic America, exemplifying the planned Urbis inspired by Piero de la Francesca's "La Citta Ideale." The Dutch rule marked a golden age for the city, allowing Jews to live with relative freedom and build the first synagogue in the Americas, Kahal Zur Israel, on Rua dos Judeus. In 1654, the end of Dutch rule and the return of the Portuguese led to the destruction of the synagogue and Jewish emigration to Newe Amsterdam (Manhattan), where they established the Shearit Israel synagogue.
