Interior of the Ramban Synagogue in Jerusalem, Israel; 2011. x
When Nahmanides - also known as Ramban - arrived in Jerusalem, he was seventy two years old and he would undertake the rebuilding of a ruined house on Mount Zion to turn it into a synagogue. The synagogue, known as the Ramban Synagogue, is the second oldest active synagogue in the Old City of Jerusalem. A number of Jewish people had moved to Jerusalem after hearing of Nahmanides' arrival. Torah scrolls that were evacuated to Shechem before the Mongol invasion of Jerusalem were even returned to Jerusalem for use in the synagogue.
The Sephardi community of Jerusalem established their community center in the adjacent place, making the area the center of Sephardi Jewish life in Jerusalem for some time. The Ramban Synagogue shared a wall with the Sidna Umar Mosque and the original building was described as similar in design. The synagogue was confiscated by Ottoman authorities from a noise compliment in 1598 and it would not be until 1835 that the Jewish community would get permission to renovate and use it again. After the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, the building was destroyed by the Arab Legion however, following the Six Day War, the synagogue was rebuilt. Today the Ramban Synagogue follows an Ashkenazi minhag.