[2] The Sephardim (Hebrew for "Jews of the Iberian Peninsula") were issued with the Spanish royal Alhambra Decree in 1492, whereby they were given the choice of exile from Spain, or conversion to Catholicism, or failing to do either, execution.

Of Spain's estimated 200,000 Jews at that time, around half converted; many by coercion, others because of social and financial pressures preventing their departure, and a few out of genuine religious conviction.

Many in fact did continue to practice Judaism behind closed doors while publicly professing to be Catholics; in Spanish and Portuguese these were called marranos.

[3] The early 17th Portuguese Jewish community of "the nation" (naçao) formed three separate congregations, which merged into one, the Talmud Torah.

Instead, the building concealed Jewish ritual items for deported Jews in the sanctuary ceiling and attic floor.

In a letter to Melamed, Toledano writes: "I hereby inform you that ten professors from all over the world, including Israel, came to a symposium on December 6, 2015.

Myself, as the Chacham of the congregation, gave a lecture on the subject and the conclusion was that the cherem [ban] imposed on him by our previous rabbis must be maintained.

On December 12, 1670, the Sephardic Jewish community of Amsterdam acquired the site to build a synagogue and construction work began on April 17, 1671, under the architect Elias Bouman [nl].

The sign also contains "1672", the year the building was intended to be completed, and "Aboab", the name of the chief rabbi who initiated the construction project.

The building is free-standing and rests on wooden piles; the foundation vaults can be viewed by boat from the canal water underneath the synagogue.

During the 1955–1959 renovation, the former Ets Hayim seminary auditorium was redesigned as a winter synagogue; central heating and electric lighting were added.

[10] The floor was covered with fine sand, in the old Dutch tradition, to absorb dust, moisture and dirt from shoes and to muffle the noise.

[11] In the seventeenth century, Western European art saw a shift from exclusively pejorative depictions of Jews and Jewish culture to one that was more realistic and observational.

The medallions on the engraving list the following names: top left, Isack Leuy Ximenez, Moseh Curiel, Daniel Pinto, Abraham Iesurun espino[s?

Medallions on the right are headed “H.R.”, top right: Isack Aboab, Isack Mendes da Silva, Iacob Ergas Henriquez, Abraham Gomes Gutieres, Isack Gomes Neto, Dauid Drago, Semuel de Elijah Abarbanel; middle right: Ioseph Iesurum, Abraham Semah Ferro, Iacob Ximenez Cardozo, Ieosuah Abas, Iacob Nunes Henriques, Dauid Franco da Costa; lower right: Abraham Franco Mendes, Isack de Miranda, Abraham Teles, Iacob Teles da Costa, Benyamin Baruch Mendes, Iacob Franco da Silua, Abraham Israel Zagache; bottom right [signed] Amsterdam, Auctore, Romano de Hooghe.

The description in Dutch by the Rijksmuseum[a] of De Hooghe's elaborate image contains considerable information about the iconography and text, here translated to English.

On the opposite sides are medallions with the names of regents of the synagogue, members of the building commission and people who performed during the dedication ceremonies.

[15] In 2014, in partnership with the National Library of Israel, a majority of the manuscripts were digitized, making the catalog available online and free.