Jewish Cherasco /Synagogue

Ghetto

Given the smallness of Cherasco's Jewish community, the ghetto consisted of one large block in the city center, at the corner of today's Via Marconi and Via Vittorio Emanuele II.

Inside, on the second floor of the 18th century building (accessed today through Via Marconi), the synagogue remains, with its original furnishings and fabrics.

 

 

The ghetto, established between 1725 and 1730, was accessed through various entryways, still present today. A photograph taken by Tagliaferro at the end of the 19th century gives an idea of its configuration:  an internal courtyard, surrounded by apartments with attached galleries made of wood, which permitted communication among the various dwellings, without need to exit the compound into the street.

With the armistice between the Kingdom of Sardinia and Revolutionary France, signed in Cherasco in 1796, the Jews acquired new liberties, among which was the possibility of leaving the ghetto. Thus, during the French occupation, some well-to-do Jewish families moved out to houses in town, or even to the countryside, where they established a number of spinning mills.

Although the return of the Savoy dynasty, in 1814, mandated re-installment of the ghetto, many Jews remained in their new dwellings. For many years, the civil authorities tried to force these families back into the ghetto, even proposing to enlarge it by acquiring the contiguous edifice of the Olivetti family. However, enlargement of the ghetto did not take place, partly because, in the meantime, ever more Jews managed to reside outside the ghetto, even for relatively long periods, mainly for business reasons, namely, in order to frequent the markets and fairs.

Further Reading

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