Besalú’s thriving Jewish community fled the town in 1436 after relentless Christian persecution. They left behind a miqvé (ritual bath) dating from the 12th century, a rare survivor of its kind in Spain, which was only rediscovered in 1964. It sits down by the river inside a vaulted stone chamber, around which remnants of the 13th-century synagogue were unearthed during excavations in 2005. Access to the miqvé is by guided tour, but you can see the square and ruin exterior independently.
