A Journey Through Jewish Ferrara

The itinerary begins in a place that invites reflection: the Jewish Cemetery on Via delle Vigne. Founded in 1588, it is a timeless haven where gravel paths wind among centuries-old trees and silence reigns. Still in use today, the cemetery holds over 1,400 tombstones, many of which have sunken into the ground over time, as revealed by recent studies.

Among the many names engraved in stone, one stands out: Giorgio Bassani, one of Italy’s greatest 20th-century writers. Through his work, he gave voice to the memory of Ferrara’s Jewish community with sensitivity and depth. His most famous novel, The Garden of the Finzi-Continis, tells the story of a Jewish family from Ferrara during World War II, whose fate is sealed by racial laws and persecution.

Continuing toward the city centre along Via Montebello and Via Terranuova, you’ll reach Via Mazzini—the heart of the former Jewish ghetto established in 1627. Today, it's a lively and bustling street, but it still bears the marks of memory.

At three different points (numbers 14, 85, and 88), you’ll find stumbling stones that commemorate Jewish citizens who were deported and never returned. At number 95, the entrance to the Synagogue building is marked by two marble plaques on either side of the doorway—it remains an active place of worship.

Walking along these streets means coming face to face with layers of emotion, where the past is still powerfully present in every detail.

Branching off from the main street of the ghetto are two narrower, more intimate lanes: Via Vignatagliata and Via Vittoria. These quiet streets once housed Jewish residences and the Jewish school—where Giorgio Bassani taught after the enactment of racial laws.

In Via Vignatagliata, a plaque commemorates Isacco Lampronti, an 18th-century doctor and rabbi, and the small square dedicated to him preserves the atmosphere of a neighbourhood that has kept its identity alive through devotion, learning, and resilience.

As you walk toward Piazza Trento e Trieste, just in front of the Cathedral, you’ll come across the Column of Borso d’Este. At first glance, it may look like a typical commemorative monument—but within it lies a painful history.

In the 18th century, during a restoration ordered by the Papal State, tombstones from the Jewish cemetery were used in its reconstruction—a symbolic and tangible act of intolerance. It wasn’t until 1960, during another restoration, that the tombstones were rediscovered and identified. Hebrew inscriptions re-emerged, revealing a buried chapter of Ferrara’s history.

The itinerary ends at the MEIS – the National Museum of Italian Judaism and the Shoah. Housed in the former city prison—where Jews and anti-fascist dissidents were imprisoned during Fascism—the museum recounts over two thousand years of Jewish life in Italy, from Roman times to the present.

Its permanent exhibition “Jews, an Italian Story”, its temporary shows, and the evocative Garden of Questions—a green labyrinth inspired by the rules of kashrut—offer an immersive and moving experience.

This is a place where culture, memory, and identity meet, opening an informed and thoughtful window onto both past and future.