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| Flights to Rome Italy Home » Tourist attractions in Rome » Tourist attractions around Rome City » Jewish Ghetto
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Jewish Ghetto |
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Some time in the1st century B.C. there was a Jewish community in Rome. During the imperial time around 30,000 Jews lived and worked in Trastevere. After the fall of the Roman Empire the population of the city went down dramatically. Gradually the number of Jews diminished. This community still played an integral part in the Roman economy. During that time the Jewish Ghetto was made.
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The Jewish community moved to the eastern bank of the Tiber in the middle age. During the same time discrimination against Jews began surfacing. A law passed in 1215 forced Jews to wear a yellow beret or shawl that was taken as the distinguishing mark for the Jews. Hatred and cruelty on the community only increased after that and reached its height in the 16th century. In 1555, the period of the inquisition Pope Paul IV confined all the Jews of Rome to a tiny area which is also known as the Jewish Ghetto. The colony got its name from the Jewish quarter of Venice. Lofty walls segregated this Jewish colony from the rest of the town.
More than 4,000 people lived inside this small colony for around three centuries. They built high buildings on the river bank. During floods the lower areas used to get flooded. So the lower areas needed to be evacuated. Living conditions in that Jewish Ghetto was really unhygienic. The oppression against Jewish citizens was such that they were allowed to trade rags and second-hand goods. Some of the inhabitants of the Jewish Ghetto worked as tailors. After the unity of Italy in 1870 the Jews finally managed to receive equal rights.
Later on most of the old buildings of the Ghetto were dismantled. The old synagogue, that housed the Cinque Schole where Jewish rituals were followed, was spared, but soon even that was gutted out by a fire in 1893. Presently this place is occupied by a school, a marvelous new synagogue which was inaugurated in 1904.
Some of the Jewish families remained in this area. Some built shops near the streets. Most of them are kosher butchers and bakers. By Ghetto or Jewish Ghetto the Romans refer to the entire area lying between Via delle Botteghe Oscure and the river. With time this area has become interesting tourist spot.
The majestic 16th-century fountain of the turtles in Piazza Mattei is one of the most attractive tourist attractions of the place. The Portico d’Ottavia was erected by the king Augustus as a symbol of love for his sister Octavia. Some of its columns were later used in the building of the church of Sant’Angelo in Pescheria that found its name from the fish market which was here. It is said that in the 17th and 18th century Jews were forced to visit this church on Saturday afternoons to hear the sermons. According to myth many of them put wax into their ears to shut the sermon of the priest out.
In the present day the Jewish Ghetto is mainly famous for the restaurants in the area dishing out lip-smacking dishes. Flightstoromeitaly.com is your guide on the visit to Jewish Ghetto. In order to have more information about tourist attractions around Rome City visit the pages under the section tourists attractions in Rome on this site.
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