Die Ephraim Veitel Stiftung und das Ephraim Palais /
The Ephraim Veitel Foundation and the Ephraim Palais,
Karl E. Grözinger in: aktuell, Aus und über Berlin, 12.2022, No. 110, S.42-46

(Vorschaubild: Ephraim Palais, Foto: Thomas Rosenthal, 2024, Detail)

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The Ephraim Veitel Foundation: A Historical Overview

Ephraim Veitel Ephraim (1729–1803), like his father, Veitel Heine Ephraim (1703–1775), served as a Jewish court jeweller to the Prussian kings. As mint tenants, Manufacturers and wholesalers, both father and son made a substantial contribution to the economic development of the state, while also playing prominent roles as chief elders of the Berlin and Prussian Jewish communities.
In a spirit of social responsibility and philanthropy, they shared the wealth accrued through their business activities by founding charitable institutions in 1775 and 1799, as well as through generous financial donations. The foundations were established not only to provide for the poor but, above all, to promote the education of Jewish youth — initially through elementary schooling and, later, in 1856, through the establishment of the Veitel Heine Ephraimsche Lehranstalt, a Jewish academic institution which went on to serve as a model for Jewish universities worldwide.
Between 1762 and 1766, Veitel Heine Ephraim commissioned the construction of the Ephraim-Palais, a distinguished Rococo-style building designed to serve both residential and commercial purposes for his firm, Ephraim & Sons. In recognition of its significance, King Frederick II himself donated the columns for the building’s portal and personally inspected the completed structure with great appreciation.
The Ephraim Veitel Foundation was subjected to forced »Aryanisation« by the Nazi regime in 1934 and remained in this alienated state for many post war decades. Following the year 2000, a comprehensive process of rejudaisation was initiated. Today, the Foundation is proud to have returned to its historic home, the Ephraim-Palais – the original seat of the Ephraim family‘s enterprise.