Edmond J. Safra Synagogue
11 East 63rd Street | also 13 East 63rd Street | Upper East Side | built 2001
Open on the map8 entries
The city photographed every building for its tax records around 1940 and again in the 1980s. NYC Municipal Archives.
Written with AI from the source each entry cites, then fact-checked.
- 1879
D. & J. Jardine build No. 11 East 63rd Street as one of three neo-Grec rowhouses
In 1879 the architects D. & J. Jardine built No. 11 East 63rd Street, a four-story neo-Grec house with a basement. It was one of a group of three neo-Grec rowhouses at Nos. 7 to 11. This entry concerns the earlier building on the lot, which stood where the synagogue now is.
- 1937
Johnson & Porter join Nos. 11 and 13 East 63rd Street and strip their facades
In 1937 the architects Johnson & Porter combined No. 11 East 63rd Street with its neighbor, No. 13, on the interior. Both fronts lost their original detail and were covered in stucco. The Landmarks Commission recorded the pair in this altered state in its Upper East Side Historic District report. This entry concerns the earlier buildings on the lot.
“1937 - combined with No. 13 on interior and facade stripped.”
- 1999
Banker Edmond Safra starts a Sephardic synagogue project before his death in 1999
Before his death in 1999, the banker and philanthropist Edmond J. Safra started the project for a synagogue on East 63rd Street. He had spent many Shabbats in Manhattan and noticed the Upper East Side's Sephardic Jews had no formal synagogue or communal center. He wanted a central house of worship for them.
Source: Wikipedia
- 2002
Lily Safra sees her late husband's synagogue completed
After Edmond Safra's death, his wife, Lily Safra, led the project with skilled artisans, and the building was finished in December 2002. Its address is 11 East 63rd Street, in the block between Madison Avenue and Fifth Avenue.
Source: secure.ejsny.org
- 2002
Thierry Despont designs a Beaux-Arts synagogue of Jerusalem stone with bronze Tree of Life doors
The architect Thierry Despont designed the synagogue in a Beaux-Arts revival style, with the facade and interior made of Jerusalem stone quarried in Judea. The sculptor Mark Beard made the large bronze doors, which carry a Tree of Life motif. Because the site lies in the Upper East Side Historic District, the Landmarks Preservation Commission had to approve the design.
“The interior and facade of the building is made of Jerusalem stone quarried in Judea. The massive bronze doors with their Tree of Life motif are by American sculptor Mark Beard.”
Source: Wikipedia
- 2003
The synagogue opens its doors, and daily prayer and study begin
The Edmond J. Safra Synagogue opened to worshippers in March 2003. Since then it has held daily minyanim and daily learning programs, along with lectures, classes and children's programs. Its congregation includes many families from varied Middle Eastern backgrounds.
Source: secure.ejsny.org
- 2003
The Chief Rabbi of Israel and Mayor Bloomberg attend the synagogue's official inauguration
In October 2003 dignitaries gathered for the official inauguration of the synagogue, including the Chief Rabbi of Israel and Mayor Michael Bloomberg. The building had been completed the previous December, and its goal was to give Sephardic Jews on the Upper East Side a central place of worship.
Source: Wikipedia
- 2016
The Safra foundation says it will replace founding rabbi Elie Abadie after 14 years
A December 28 letter from the Edmond J. Safra Philanthropic Foundation, chaired by Lily Safra, said the board would replace Rabbi Elie Abadie, the founding spiritual leader. The foundation said it had given more than $60 million and would end its funding on January 31, 2017; it is believed to have supplied about half of the operating budget. Abadie answered that he was being forced out under false pretenses and that the dispute was about control. A new group, Congregation Beit Edmond, was to take over the lease.
Source: jta.org
Further reading
Nearby
- 820 Fifth Avenue820 5th Avenue | 11 entries
- William Ziegler Jr. House2 East 63rd Street | 5 entries
- Edward J. Berwind House828 5th Avenue | 11 entries
- Fifth Avenue Synagogue5 East 62nd Street | 6 entries
- Wildenstein & Co. Building19 East 64th Street | 4 entries
- New India House3 East 64th Street | 4 entries