Construction of Holocaust Museum Approved in Thessaloniki, Greece

The decision to build the museum in this location was made about a decade ago, considering its historical significance. However, it has faced numerous challenges, requiring legislative changes and two presidential decrees to resolve ownership and land use issues.

The architectural design of the museum has been awarded to a team comprising P. Makridis & Associates from Greece, EK A / Efrat Kowalsky Architects from Israel, and Heide & von Beckerath from Germany.

The layout of the museum will be collaboratively designed by the Jewish Community of Thessaloniki and the Board of Jewish Studies of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. The Jewish Community of Thessaloniki, serving as the legal entity of public law, will oversee the entire construction process. The museum is expected to be a significant landmark representing Thessaloniki’s history, addressing the “guilty secret” of the city’s annihilation of its 50,000 Sephardic Jews.

The urban planning authority of Thessaloniki, Greece, has given approval for the construction of a Holocaust museum in the city. The project, which will begin in early 2023, is expected to take around two and a half years to complete. Funding for the museum will be provided by the governments of Greece and Germany, as well as the Stavros Niarchos Foundation and Albert Bourla, the CEO of Pfizer. The museum will be built in the area of the old commercial railway, which played a significant role in transporting over 50,000 Thessaloniki Jews to concentration camps during the Axis occupation of Greece from 1941 to 1944.

The decision to build the museum in this location was made about a decade ago, considering its historical significance. However, it has faced numerous challenges, requiring legislative changes and two presidential decrees to resolve ownership and land use issues. The architectural design of the museum has been awarded to a team comprising P. Makridis & Associates from Greece, EK A / Efrat Kowalsky Architects from Israel, and Heide & von Beckerath from Germany.

The layout of the museum will be collaboratively designed by the Jewish Community of Thessaloniki and the Board of Jewish Studies of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. The Jewish Community of Thessaloniki, serving as the legal entity of public law, will oversee the entire construction process. The museum is expected to be a significant landmark representing Thessaloniki’s history, addressing the “guilty secret” of the city’s annihilation of its 50,000 Sephardic Jews.