September 2014: Dr. Celia Bergoffen, Excavating a Jewish Ritual Pool in a Manhattan, Russian Bath House

September 14, 2014 at 3pm
Dr. Celia Bergoffen
Excavating a Jewish Ritual Pool in a Manhattan, Russian Bath House
Who could have suspected that a former Russian bath house — allegedly frequented by the Jewish mafia during the roaring 20s — would contain an elegant, blue-and-white tiled mikvah conforming to religious “specs” and certified by a rabbi? The excavation of the pool, which is the oldest known, demonstrably kosher mikvah in New York, shows how religious requirements translated into a ritual installation in turn-of-the-century New York and sheds new light on this aspect of Lower East Siders’ daily lives.

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