New museum in Fez preserves Moroccan Jewish heritage

Moroccan authorities and cultural leaders opened a museum dedicated to Moroccan Jewish culture in the old Jewish quarter of Fez.

The city has served as a center for learning and spirituality since the ninth century and was historically shaped by Jewish, Arab, Amazigh, Spanish, and French cultures. Mehdi Qotbi, the president of the National Foundation of Museums, stated that the museum aims to showcase the peaceful coexistence of these different cultures. The permanent exhibition spans two levels.

The ground floor covers more than 2,500 years of Jewish presence in Morocco, while the second floor focuses on social structures like synagogues, Hebrew schools, and rabbinical courts. The museum displays everyday items, jewelry, musical instruments, and historical manuscripts. The museum highlights a community that has largely moved abroad. Only about 2,500 Jews remain in Morocco today, though they once made up 5% of the population.

Most people of Moroccan Jewish heritage now live in France, Canada, the United States, or Israel. Rabbi Joseph Israel described the museum as a lesson for young people about the history of peaceful relations between Jews and their Muslim neighbors.