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Telemaco
Signorini, Il Ghetto di Firenze, 1882 |
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Italy
is unique in Jewish history. It is home to a community
dating back over two thousand years, the oldest in
Europe and the only to have survived uninterrupted.
For seventy generations, it has succeeded in conserving
its original characteristics, patrimony and identity
without conforming to the surrounding environment often
hostile and oppressive, political and individual
inclemency. The community's presence is unknown and
miniscule, deeply rooted in Italy's long history,
a mosaic pieced from scarce documentation available.
Not only differences in religious beliefs but customs
accenting these discrepancies continually aggravated
the Italian Jews' already difficult situation. In
spite of the extremely limited population and the
overwhelming adversity surrounding them, the Jewish
and Christian populations have endured in extremely
close contact. Yet both have continued to remain
reciprocal strangers in a disparity which often favored
(or disfavored) one legally and politically and the
other economically. The Florentine Rabbi Samuel Zvi
Margulies (1858-1922) compared the two people to
two liquids—oil and water. Italy is emblematic
of the Diaspora but within it are many Jewish worlds.
Each has its own unique features, history and humanity.
A name may indicate provenance from the land of exile
or adoption and well understood between one Italian
Jew and another. This is not the case with the language.
Yiddish never existed in Italy. There is a Judaic
dialect in Rome, another in Mantova, and still others
in Turin and Leghorn. |
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JEWISH
HERITAGE is a fourteen-day tour extending
throughout Italy, generally Rome to Venice as herein,
but may include any other communities of historical
importance. It may be more suitable for families
desiring a bar or batsmitzvah or wedding, small groups
or couples seeking a more in-depth study of the community
in Italy.
JEWISH TUSCANY is
a eight-day tour amidst very diverse
and contrasting worlds within the region
of Tuscany alone, nevertheless enabling
the visitor to understand the multiplicity
of Italian Jewish character and color.
To enhance the cultural setting and
lend an artistic perspective to our
tours, visits are arranged to numerous
state and civic museums, monuments,
archaeological sites and a winery-—all
outside the Jewish historical context.
Tours may be arranged as wished, wherever
in Italy, for Jews and non-Jews alike. |
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Luca
della Robbia, Cantoria, 1431-38 |
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S.A.Hart, Festa
della Legge in Livorno's Antica Sinagoga,
1850 |
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Days
are planned to be leisurely, with travel in the countryside
and ample individual time for dining, further visits or
shopping apart from the itinerary. Groups are generally
limited to 15 to 20 persons. In addition to your
group guide, the group may be also accompanied full-time
by an historian or rabbi. Each visit will be conducted
by a licensed Italian tour guide and native of that
particular community. Both accommodations and restaurants
are well-known from past experience, generally family
operated, conveniently situated and selected to offer
the best in typical regional cuisine, atmosphere and comfort.
One of us on at least one occasion has lodged or
dined in these establishments and no price will exceed
that published. The tour leader and a van will remain
with the group throughout the tour. |
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