Obj. ID: 8902
  Architecture Hasidic Beit Midrash in Kupiškis, Lithuania
The Hasidic beit midrash was probably built at the end of the 19th century. It can be seen in photographs from the 1930s showing its southern and a part of the eastern façade. Apparently it was a rather small redbrick structure covered with a hipped tin roof. Its corners and the division between the prayer hall and the western part were emphasized by lesenes. Judging from the southern façade, the western two-storey part contained rectangular windows in both tiers, and the eastern prayer hall was lit by larger round-headed windows. The central pier of the eastern façade – corresponding to the interior location of the Torah ark – was wider than the side piers.
After WWII the building was converted into a boiler-house that functions until today. The façades were plastered and changed completely. Only the lesenes, and most likely a narrow cornice at the top of the façades have survived from the original structure. Rectangular windows now pierce the façades, and two gates were cut into the structure on its northern side. The eastern façade is blank and has a redbrick annex connecting it to the former Great Synagogue. Another annex made of corrugated sheet metal is attached to the western façade, and an annex of white silicate bricks abuts on the northern side.
The interior layout, including the eastern prayer hall and two rooms on the west, is preserved. The silhouettes of the bricked-up round-headed openings are discernible on the western wall of the former prayer hall; the remnants of two round-headed arched openings, which connected the women’s section with the prayer hall, can be seen in the southwestern room. The rest of the interior, including the ceiling and flooring, have been totally destroyed.