Matzo bakery: the house with many faces

On Vogelsangstrasse in Lengnau stands a house whose purpose has changed many times over the years. Built by the Jewish community in 1813, it served over the years as a gathering place, schoolroom and spiritual centre. Community leaders met here, and children were taught here during the day. The cellar housed the mikveh, the Jewish ritual bath.

From schoolhouse to bakery

The building later was later repurposed. When separate buildings were built for the school and mikveh, the building initially served as a living space, and from 1875 to 1910 as a matzo bakery, as well. Samuel Daniel Guggenheim made unleavened flatbreads for Passover here. Matzo commemorates the liberation of the Israelites from Egypt – their hasty departure left no time for the dough to rise.

An ending – and a new beginning 

After 1910, the building returned to its original purpose. But from 1973 on, it stood empty, gradually fell into disrepair, and was finally demolished in 2013. A new building stands in its place today. However, the story of its origins remains alive to this day.