This year's 19th Festival of Jewish Culture in Cracow closed with a grand concert on Szeroka Street, drawing thousands of viewers. The nine festival days saw over 200 events held, including several dozen concerts plus workshops, exhibitions and movie screenings. The organizers say that apart from commemorating the former Jewish inhabitants of the Kazimierz district of Cracow, the main goal of the festival is to celebrate Jewish life.

An exhibition entitled Pillars of Judaism, which opened during the festival, is on display at the Stara (Old) Synagogue until the end of the year. Understanding Jewish culture is impossible without at least a basic knowledge of Jewish religious literature, which underlies Jewish tradition and continues to inspire it.

The titular pillars are the Hebrew Bible and rabbinic literature, including the Mishnah, Talmud and the wealth of rabbinic writing that followed.

Pillars of Judaism, open until Dec. 30
Old Synagogue, 24 Szeroka St., Cracow