This event took place on December 5th 2005, in a formal ceremony in the Palais De l'Europe, Strasbourg.

Mme Maud de Boer-Buquicchio, Deputy Secretary General of the Council of Europe awarded the European Association for the Preservation and Promotion of Jewish Culture and Heritage (AEPJ) the diploma of "Major Cultural Route of the Council of Europe" to the European Route of Jewish Heritage. The ceremony took place to recognize and promote Jewish Heritage, as an integral part of our European Cultural Heritage. It consisted in a formal award ceremony in the Council of Europe, with presences of the partner organisations' presidents, steering committee and European authorities, and the unveiling of a plaque in the synagogue of Pfaffenhoffen, which is one of the rare rural synagogues from the 18th century that has been preserved in Alsace. The event was also supported by the city's Major who officially concluded the ceremony with a cocktail in the city hall for the participants. After launching the European Day of Jewish Culture across Europe, B'nai B'rith Europe, the European Council of Jewish Communities and the Red de Juderias de España have decided to extend the reach of this event throughout Europe and make these more sites visible and accessible to the general public throughout the year. The shared aim is to develop and promote the preservation of Jewish Heritage. This award ceremony which showcased the European Route of Jewish Heritage, was a project that was launched at a conference organised with the collaboration of the Government of Luxembourg on 18-20 June 2004. This brought together the coordinators of both the European Day of Jewish Culture and a scientific committee formed by eminencies and specialists in Jewish Art Heritage. Visitors will be invited from throughout Europe to discover more European Jewish Heritage sites of interest such as the Spanish Jewish Quarters, the wooden synagogues in Lithuania, the Jewish Cemeteries in Alsace, the Jewish Museum in Prague, the Italian synagogues in Florence and Casale MonferratoÉ, which will all be opened to the general public. All organisations linked to these Jewish Communities across Europe such as synagogues, cemeteries, mikvaot, Jewish Quarters, monuments, Memorials, but also archives, libraries, museums dedicated to the study, promotion and understanding of the Jewish Life stand to benefit by being involved with this project.