Synagogues
Only in 1626 did the papal government (which had taken over from the Estensi one) set up a ghetto closing off the area around Via Sabbioni (now Via Mazzini) with five gates. In that same street, in 1485, the rich Roman banker Ser Samuel Melli had purchased a large house and donated it to the Ferrarese Jews so that they could use it as a seat for their institutions. This well-preserved building still serves as the heart of today’s much-reduced local community. Among the most important rooms inside, is the ex-German Temple (i.e. Ashkenazi), now used for the most solemn ceremonies: of particular note is the Aròn (Ark) containing the scrolls with the laws, a magnificent example of 17th century woodworking. The ex-Italian Temple is today a large elegant room used for conferences and community celebrations. On the right of the room is a line of wooden parts of three arón no longer in use: the one in the centre belongs to the Italian synagogue, the two at the sides came from the Spanish one. The Fanese Oratory is a small 19th-century temple used by all for the rituals of the Sabbath.
The Jewish Museum is on the second floor.
