U. Nahon Museum of Italian Jewish Art

About

Approximately 40,000 visitors come to this world-renowned Italian synagogue and art museum. The U. Nahon Museum of Italian Jewish Art offers visitors the opportunity to “visit” Italy from a Jewish perspective and to travel through the centuries. The museum is known for its unique, relaxing atmosphere and brings the special appeal of the Renaissance and Baroque period to a corner of central Jerusalem.

A highlight of this museum is an ancient and incredibly beautiful synagogue from the beginning of the 18th-century that was brought especially to Jerusalem from Conegliano, a little town near Venice. Today this splendid synagogue serves the Italian Jewish community in Jerusalem in their prayers with the "Rome ritual" – one of the most ancient preserved rituals in the contemporary Jewish world.

The Museum's permanent exhibition is called MADE IN ITALY: The Material Side of Spiritual Objects, and it reflects the different materials of Judaica and their respective techniques. Metals such as gold and silver, woodwork, textiles, manuscripts and prints are all represented. In addition there are a wealth of embroidered hangings, drawn velvets, damasks and taffetas brocaded with gold and silver. Woodwork on display includes Holy Arks ornamented with carved floral motifs and water-gilded, as well as wooden fruit compositions of rare beauty.  Several works are treasures which were restored in order to preserve their rich historical grandeur.

The museum also holds a collection of decorated manuscript documents on paper and parchment, such as Haggadot and a large collection of Ketubbot. All of these together constitute moving testimonies of the cultural tradition of Italian Jewry and its expressions in different cities. Special laboratories operate in the framework of the museum for the restoration of textiles and wood.

Besides the permanent exhibition, the museum periodically holds special thematic exhibitions.

Hours: Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday: 10:00-17:00, Thursday 12:00-21:00, Friday 10:00-13:00

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