The New Synagogue (Neue Synagoge) in Berlin was opened in 1866 with a ceremony marking the Jewish New Year. At the time, the building's 3,200 seating capacity made it the largest Jewish house of worship in Germany. The inspiration for the building, which was designed by the prominent Berlin architect Eduard Knoblauch (1801–1865), came from the Moorish style of the Alhambra in Granada. The stunning dome is covered in golden buttresses and stands more than 50 metres high, and its dramatic silhouette soon became famous far beyond Germany's borders. The New Synagogue was desecrated during the "Kristallnacht" Pogrom of November 1938. It was saved, however, from any major damage on that night, only to suffer tremendously during the bombings of the Second World War. In 1995, the restored sections of the building were reopened as the Centrum Judaicum and featured a permanent exhibition titled "Open ye Gates". This exhibition uses photographs, architectural fragments, ceremonial objects, paintings and historical records to document the history of the building as well as Berlin's Jewish community.
The Centrum Judaicum follows the tradition of the New Synagogue and also sees itself as a link between the past and the future. It serves as a site of research and documentation of Jewish life and offers a number of changing exhibitions that help to bring Berlin's vibrant Jewish history to life.