Speaker Series
Tránsito Synagogue: A Monument to Peace and Interfaith Collaboration in 14th Century Spain
Thursday, November 21
7:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers

Adorned with both Hebrew and Arabic Scripture, Samuel Halevi's synagogue of El Tránsito in Toledo, Spain, is a Jewish monument to peace and interfaith collaboration from the 14th century. Presenter Robert Darr is a translator of classical Persian and Arabic. He has for two decades studied the calligraphy and ornamentation of the Alhambra Palaces in Granada, Spain, and the related calligraphy ornamenting Tránsito Synagogue in Toledo. His talk will explore the history leading up to a golden age of collaboration between Spanish Christians, Jews, and Muslims in the 13th and 14th centuries C.E. The talk will include images of Tránsito's calligraphic ornamentation and Darr’s recent translations of the Arabic texts.