As the sun rose on the early modern era (mid-fifteenth century) Jews found themselves in a dynamic and changing world. It gradually afforded them new socio-economic and civic opportunity that they had not known in nearly a thousand years. The Middle Ages began with the end of the Roman Empire and Christianity's efforts at religious hegemony. Jews had endured much persecution during the previous millennium (c. 450–c. 1450). This new era included the Renaissance, the Age of Discovery, the Reformation and Counter-Reformation, Humanism, the Age of Reason and the Scientific Revolution, among other historical movements. Though they were a minute proportion of the world's population, the Jews not only had a profound impact on Western civilization, but were also greatly influenced by the peoples they lived amongst during this era. Important scholarship has recently been published on early modern Jewish history and here I intend to build upon and enhance what previous historians have contributed. Their approach has focused on intangible aspects of this heritage, such as social, cultural or economic history in contrast to tangible buildings and artefacts. My focus is on how the experience of early modern Jews had an effect on material cultural heritage, with an emphasis on the synagogue. Not since late antiquity had Jews experimented with synagogue design and development to such a degree.