Johann Hoeniger designed the Rykestrasse Synagogue in Berlin's Prenzlauer Berg in the Romanesque Revival style. The Jewish community of Berlin built it because many Jews in the neighborhood could not afford a private synagogue. Construction began in 1903 and it was inaugurated on September 4, 1904. The brick building is about 150 feet (45.8 meters) long, 88 feet (26.7 meters) wide and 57 feet (17.3 meters) high. It originally held about 2,000 people and now seats 1,074.
During the November Pogrom of 1938 it was not burned, but its furnishings were vandalized and destroyed, and a fire set with the Torah scrolls was put out before it spread. It closed for services in April 1940.
The first Shabbat service after the war was on July 13, 1945. It was rededicated on August 31, 2007 after more than a year of restoration.
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