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Jewish treasures, monuments and books in Italy.
March 20, 2017
Pesaro occupies an important position in the history of Hebrew publishing. Abraham b. Ḥayyim “the Dyer” worked in Pesaro before moving to Ferrara in 1477. In 1507, Gershom Soncino opened a printing house in Pesaro and worked there with limited interruption until 1520. He produced, besides books in Italian and Latin, an impressive range of classical […]
March 20, 2017
Hebrew manuscripts from the Historical Archive in Pesaro. (Read article) The Archive of the Jewish Community of Pesaro is today part of the Historical Archive of the Jewish Community of Rome.
March 20, 2017
Up until 1633, the year the ghetto was established, Pesaro had three synagogues and numerous prayer rooms. There was a synagogue for the Hispano-Levantine rite, as well as two separate synagogues (of great beauty) following the native Italian rite. The former was commissioned and financed by Mordekhaj Volterra, a wealthy Portuguese banker, prior to his […]
March 20, 2017
The old Jewish cemetery in Pesaro was once located just outside Porta Fano. Of the remains that have been found, the earliest mentioned dates come from 1214 and the oldest surviving fragment of a tomb stone is dated to 1415. A second cemetery was inaugurated after 1550, on the San Bartolo hill, where it still stands […]
March 20, 2017
Buildings and narrow streets in the Ghetto of Pesaro The Ghetto of Pesaro extended through what today are Via Mazzolari and Via Sara Levi Nathan, Via delle Scuole, Via dei Negozianti, Via delle Botteghe and Via Almerico da Venutra. The ancient via dei Negozianti (Merchants’ Street) was renamed after Sara Levi (1819-1882), a friend of […]
March 20, 2017
Federico da Montefeltro (1444-1482), Duke of Urbino, was known for his liberal policy towards the Jews. He invited them to settle in his Duchy, which included Gubbio, Cagli, Fano and Sant’Angelo in Vado. Jews were given license to practice trades and professions and some representatives of the community sat in court as the Duke’s advisors […]
March 20, 2017
Jews had settled in Pesaro by the early 15th century. Money lending to the poor was the most conspicuous, but by no means the most important, of the many activities of Jewish bankers. Jews supplied floating capital to local artisans and merchants, as well as providing financial support to farmers in anticipation of the crops. […]
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