Florence

EXPLORE THE BEAUTY AND VITALITY OF FLORENCE’S JEWISH COMMUNITY WITH US!

Did you love watching Medici: Masters of Florence? Then you’ll love our Jewish tour of Tuscany’s capitol!

Florence’s Jewish history dates back to the 13th and 14th centuries when Jewish merchants and bankers began settling in the city. The local community was officially established during the 15th century when Cosimo de’Medici invited Jews to work in Florence as money lenders. Though the Jews of Florence were soon confined to a ghetto and subjected to restrictive laws, Jewish life flourished in the Renaissance city with synagogues, religious schools, and ritual bath houses established to serve the community inside the ghetto. Jews were not given full civic rights until the Napoleonic army entered the city in 1799. When Florence became part of the newly united kingdom of Italy in 1861, Jews were finally recognized as citizens.

After the Holocaust, in which 311 Jews from Florence were deported or killed, the local synagogue and other community institutions were restored. Today the Jewish population numbers at just 1000 with a Sephardic synagogue as well as a Jewish community center, schools, and youth organizations. Your tour will take you through the remaining streets of the ghetto to the Moorish-style synagogue with its Hagia Sophia-inspired architecture. You’ll view artifacts from the Middle Ages at the Jewish museum before visiting the Jewish cemetery with its uniquely sculpturesque grave stones. If you want to get outside of the city, head to one of the kosher wineries nearby and end the day with an authentic Italian pasta dinner at a local kosher restaurant.

Explore the beauty and vitality of Florence’s Jewish community with us!

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