- Erfurt receives certificate and celebrates World Heritage title
Erfurt receives its official UNESCO World Heritage certificate nearly a year after being inscribed on the list. State Minister of Foreign Affairs Katja Keul will hand over the document (at 11:00 AM) to Mayor Andreas Horn (CDU) at the town hall. Interested parties can watch the ceremony live via stream in a lounge under the Krämerbrücke, as the city announced.
The event and title will be celebrated today with a public and free program. Together with the festival organizers of the Yiddish Summer Weimar, the city has organized concerts, tours, lectures, and more around Jewish culture at various locations in the old town until 10:00 PM. A parade is scheduled to march to the town hall parking lot in the afternoon, where live music will be performed.
In September 2023, UNESCO inscribed three Erfurt buildings as testimonies of the city's Jewish medieval heritage: the Old Synagogue, a Mikveh (ritual bath), and the Stone House, a historic former residential building. Since then, the Old Synagogue, now a museum, has seen a significant increase in visitors, according to the city. Thuringia now has five UNESCO World Heritage sites.
More information Program link Yiddish Summer Weimar program link
I'm not going to sugarcoat it, the increase in visitors at the Old Synagogue since its recognition as a UNESCO World Heritage site has been overwhelming. Despite the crowd, the additional tours and events around Jewish culture have been a genuine delight for the city's residents.
