Commemorating the 500th anniversary of the founding of the Venice Ghetto, this magnificent hand-bound Ultimate Collection volume introduces readers to the beauty and historical and spiritual significance of the five principal synagogues in Venice, the most important markers of Jewish faith and culture in the Most Serene Republic. Behind the walls of the Ghetto, Venetian Jews expressed strong ties to the traditions of their forefathers in constructing these beautiful places of worship. The architecture, furnishings, and decorations blended the memory of their different countries of origin with traditions of Venetian artistic culture, bequeathing the City on the Lagoon enduring monuments of unparalleled eminence that remain sites of reverence and admiration.

The constraints of the ghetto and the concomitant interaction of various Jewish traditions produced a remarkable cultural flowering.

Superbly illustrated views from antiquity to modern times accompany concise profiles of synagogues across the continent, including Cracow's Old Synagogue, the Great Synagogue of Vilnius, and Vienna's Tempelgasse. 253 illustrations.

This book explores how the Jewish ghetto engaged the sensory imagination of Venice in complex and contradictory ways to shape urban space and reshape Christian-Jewish relations.

The creation of the Venetian Ghetto - A tour of the Ghetto - Ghetto Nuova - Scuola Grande Tedesca - Scuola Canton - Scuola Italiana - Ghetto Vecchio - Scuola Grande Spagnola - Scuola Levantina - Ghetto Nuovissimo - Cemetery of S. Nicolo del Lido - Scuole - Jews in Venice - Renaissance.