After finishing our morning doppio (double espresso) in the hotel lobby, Marco, our concierge, rushes over and hands me a list of local sites to visit near our hotel situated in Puglia, a region of Southern Italy. At the top of the list noted in asterisks is the Jewish Museum in Lecce. I’m surprised with the recommendation as I never indicated that I am Jewish. Perhaps it’s just our middle-aged Jewish vibe. A quick check minutes later on Trip Advisor reassures me that the Jewish Museum in Lecce comes highly rated.

The next day, on a blustery October afternoon, my husband and I park our tiny red rental Peugeot outside the medieval walled city, then set off on foot to the Museo Ebraico di Lecce ( Jewish Museum of Lecce), located in the center of the medieval Giudecca (Jewish district) .  It is lunchtime and although I’m distracted by the local pasticcerias (pastry shops) on the way selling Lecce’s famous pasticciotto – oval shaped custard filled shortbread pastries- I manage to notice the street sign above written in both  Hebrew and Italian, Via della Singagoga (Synagogue Street), I gather we must be heading in the right direction. When I pass by a B&B with the name Michaelangelo artistically carved into an iron plaque hanging beside its front door, the name is also written below in Hebrew.

Synagogue Street unwinds into to a large square where the  main attraction is the elaborately adorned Basilica di Santa Croce(Church of the Holy Cross), and we almost miss the stairs leading down to the modest entrance of the Jewish Museum of Lecce. Parallel to the Synagogue Street is the Vico della Saponea which is in reference to the Jewish soap(sapone) making business conducted in the Jewish quarter of medieval Lecce.  We sign up for a combined museum tour and walk, squeezing in a quick lunch around the corner of ciceri e tria– a local chickpea and pasta dish which we devour in seconds.

In my then, limited knowledge of Puglia, which geographically is often described as the “heel” of Italy’s boot, I assume that there exists a thriving Jewish community in Lecce, with Jewish restaurants and an old Jewish neighbourhood like the other  European places I’ve visited – the Travestere neighbourhood of Rome, and the Marais in Paris. I assume the creation of a Jewish Museum  in Lecce is a culmination of the Italian Jewish community’s efforts.

What I am about to discover is in fact the very opposite; there are virtually no Jewish inhabitants remaining in Lecce since the 1500’s; with the Edicts of Expulsion (1510 and 1541) issued by the new Spanish rulers of the Kingdom of Naples,  the Jews began to leave Italy, a land where they had lived for over a thousand years.  Many Jewish communities found refuge in nearby Albania and Greece.

Previous to the 1500’s, Jewish communities in Puglia can be traced back to 70 CE with the destruction of the Second Temple , also known as the Siege of Jerusalem by the Romans. After conquering the Jewish state,  Roman Emperor Titus brought thousands of Jewish prisoners to Puglia. These Jewish medieval folks  settled in other cities  in this region also referred to as Salento,  many  of whom became merchants and trades.

The Jews of medieval Puglia left an indelible imprint in the region, and one that is thoughtfully captured by the Jewish Museum of Lecce, co-founded in 2016, by a Lecce businessman, Michaelangelo Mazzotta,  coincidentally, the very same Michaelangelo, who is the proprietor of the small B&B I passed earlier.

Mazzotta says, “ I have no direct connection to Judaism, but I’ve always been fascinated by the way cultures intertwine in the Mediterranean.”

For Mazzotta, it all began after buying a house on Via della Sinagoga, later to  become  the Michaelangelo B&B , and he wondered why the street was called Synagogue Street, as there was no synagogue visibly present. As Mazzotta delved into the history of the area, he soon discovered that about a block away from his building on Synagogue Street, was the Palazzo Persone,  a medieval structure where the synagogue of Lecce was once  located.

In 2016, Mazzotta approached the owner, Bruno Taurino, and proposed the idea of “ restoring the place in a way that respected its origins.”

Taurino agreed , and from there “ the idea of a museum was born.” Mazzotta’s wife, Patrizia Isola, and colleague, Francesco De Giorgi joined in on the project,  Mazzotta then reached out to the academic community and enlisted, Fabrizio Lelli(Professor of Hebrew Language and Literature, University of Salento), Professsor Paul Arthur, Director of the School of Medieval Archaeology(University of Salento),  and David Katan(Professor of English and Translation, University of Salento) to help launch this colossal initiative. “Learning about the story of Lecce’s Jewish community inspired me to study further and develop a deep respect for the Jewish heritage,” says Mazzotta.

Mazzotta an accountant by training also owns Infotab Tours, a local travel agency, located in the very same square as the Church of the Holy Cross and the Jewish Museum of Lecce.“ At first, some people didn’t understand why a Jewish Museum was being created in Lecce, a city with a strong Catholic identity,” Mazzotta says. “Over time, however, the local community has recognized its importance, and both the Puglia region and the Province of Lecce have come to appreciate its cultural and historical value.” A major benefactor of the museum is British-Iranian scholar , art collector and philanthropist, Sir Nasser David Khalili and his family.  Ancient Judaica from Khalili’s collection is on display in the museum.

During our  tour, Chiara Miglietta, 28, who has a Bachelor’s degree in Archeology,  tells me that she is not in fact Jewish, and had no prior knowledge of a  Jewish presence in Lecce or the surrounding areas.

The museum, is packed with artifacts, well documented historical panels, photographs, special exhibitions, Judaica, film installations  and remnants from medieval times including  a wash basin thought to be the synagogue mikvah(ritual bath),

A niche on the exterior of the Museum in the courtyard,  clearly indicates the presence of a mezuzah. A stone slab is on display inside with a Hebrew inscription  from the book of Genesis;  the original slab was  found nearby in the  walls of the Palazzo Adorno, after the 1500’s Jewish buildings were destroyed and much of the stone had been reused for other purposes.

At the end of the tour,  Chiara leads us to a screening room to watch two short films.  One is an animated film depicting Jewish life in medieval Salento, and the second is a documentary screened  by Israeli director, Yael Katzir, entitled, Shores of Light: Salento 1945-47 (2015). Shores of Light follows three Israeli women who were born post WWll, at a Displacement Camp in the tiny fishing port of Santa Maria di Leuca (1946) near Lecce, who return back to their birth place “discovering the footprints left by their parents.”.

In the film, these women, born to Holocaust survivors, reunite with the locals in Santa Maria Di Leuca, almost 70 years later. Other cities in this region that set up transit camps to help displaced Jews from the war prepare for their journey by ship to Israel, include  Santa Maria al Bagno, Santa Cesarea Terme, and Tricase Porto. Filmmaker Katzir, captures the hope of the holocaust survivors and their caring Italian hosts, intertwined with original post WWll footage and current testimonials.

While perusing the small retail area in the Jewish Museum,  impressed by the selection of Italian Jewish cookbooks,  I suddenly hear Hebrew being spoken nearby. I rush up and say “shalom” to  an Israeli couple and  their daughter in her 20’s, as well as a tall, elegant gray-haired woman. I’m so over taken by the documentary I’ve just seen that I insist  they see the film too. The older woman turns to me and says, “I’m one of the babies that you saw featured in the film. My name is Esther.” Without hesitation,  I reach out and hug her.

Esther Hertzog, 79, is an Israeli social anthropologist. She was born in 1946 in Santa Maria de Leuca to parents who were Holocaust survivors. Her parents met in Italy after the war, got married and had Esther. Esther was only one years old when she boarded a ship in Genoa to immigrate to Israel.

“ I heard a great deal from my parents about my birth at the tip of the heel of the Italian boot” Esther says. “They spoke about this period with nostalgia and often described it with affection.”

Hertzog describes participating in the film as an “unforgettable” experience. She has returned to Puglia since then, and this time, is staying  for a month, lecturing at the University of Salento . “Most of all my fascinating experience of daily visits to the Jewish Museum have been wonderful and special.” Esther comes often to simply watch the reactions of the museum goers after they see the film.

Just as I’m about to leave the museum, Michaelangelo Mazzotto, the museum’s co-founder, walks over to say hello to Esther. I interject, thanking him for creating such a beautiful and meaningful museum.

Mazzotta responds with the help of our guide, Chiara, translating, “I’m proud to help bring attention to the history of a forgotten community. Today, understanding this story means seeing Lecce with new eyes- realizing that it was not only a Catholic city, but a cosmopolitan one, shaped by the meeting and sometimes clash of different cultures.”

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)