Perhaps not everyone knows that Venice is home to the first ghetto established in the world. It is a place in its own right, dare I say a world apart, enclosing its incredible history intact to bring it to the present day and to pass it down to posterity. The Venetian ghetto should not be understood in the negative sense of the term, because it defined primarily a physical place, and the Republic always proved to be very tolerant of minorities, including the Jewish community. Upon entering this particular area of the city, one is pleasantly amazed and fascinated by its architecture, which is different from the rest of Venice. In the Ghetto, Jews had to shape defined and highly limited spaces in a careful and functional manner. And, since they were forced to make a virtue of necessity, the solution was found through the vertical expansion of the buildings as we can still see today. Jewish Venice, always alive and active, presents itself to our eyes as a parallel universe that speaks to the visitor and to the world of tolerance, welcome and hospitality.
Proposed itinerary
Welcome to Cannaregio, the northern Sestiere of the city. Giving us a rendezvous at the train station, we will continue beyond the Ponte delle Guglie to enter a place suspended in time: the ancient Jewish Ghetto. The area developed into a single island that had only one entrance from the Rio di Cannaregio. This entrance was closed every evening and reopened the following morning. The Ghetto was established on March 29, 1516, and the city’s Jewish community had to live here for centuries.
The architecture is peculiar because the only way to increase housing space in the face of a constantly growing population wasvertical expansion, which is why the only Venetian “skyscrapers” can still be seen here today. The community thrived with many residents and synagogues, which is why from the Gheto Novo the adjoining island, the Gheto Vechio, was also connected, and finally the area was completed with new residents flowing into the Gheto Novissimo. With the fall of the Republic in 1797 and the arrival of Napoleon, everything changed for this part of the city as well; the residency requirement for Jews fell and the entrance gates were permanently removed.
This itinerary is proposed by:
Lucia Olivan – tour guide
Qualifications: Italian, English, Spanish
Tel. +393405971593
Email: lucia.olivan@goguide.it
VAT number: 03590410274
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