A visit to the Jewish Ghetto of Rome

Today I have visited one of Rome hidden gems. The Jewish Ghetto of Rome. And wow! This place has a huge story to tell!

Rome’s historic Jewish neighborhood is somewhat obscured by the Capitol, the Tiber, and the bustling Campo de’ Fiori neighborhood. A bewildered traveler who ignores the billboards advertising kosher fare might not even be aware that he is traveling through a rather unique area of Rome.

Before 1500 most Jews lived on the left bank of the Tiber, in Trastevere. During the Counter-Reformation, Pope Paul IV forced the Jews to move to a ghetto on the opposite bank. The ghetto also houses the synagogue, which houses the Museo Ebraico di Roma museum, which brings the history of the Jewish community in Rome to life. The Roman Ghetto, also known as the Ghetto of Rome, was a Jewish neighborhood in Rome, Italy, that was first established in 1555. It was located in the Rione Sant’Angelo, close to the River Tiber and the Theatre of Marcellus, and was bordered by the streets Via del Portico d’Ottavia, Lungotevere dei Cenci, Via del Progresso, and Via di Santa Maria.

The ghetto of Rome remained under papal rule until the conquest of Rome in 1870, with the exception of brief intervals under Napoleon from 1808 to 1815 and under the Roman Republics of 1798–99 and 1849. The Jewish ghetto of Rome has now a lot of historical and interesting places to visit during when you are visiting Rome.

In the archaeological area surrounding the Theater of Marcellus there are also the Temple of Bellona and the Temple of Apollo.

Bellona Temple
Built in 296 BC, it was a parallelepiped with 6 columns on the front and 11 columns on the long sides, erected on a high podium with front steps. The concrete nucleus of the podium from the Augustan age remains today of the temple.

Temple of Apollo
Erected in 431 BC, it was restored several times and redone, most recently, in the Augustan age by di Gaio Sosio with a structure similar to that of Bellona, ​​with two lateral staircases. Three Corinthian columns in white marble remain, rebuilt in 1940.

We also ate here insanely good! at Taverno del Ghetto! They had AMAZING wine!

Next to this ghetto you will see the theater of Marcellus. The Theatre of Marcellus is a historic open-air theater that was constructed in Rome, Italy, around the end of the Roman Republic. Locals and guests may both see drama and musical acts at the theater. Today, Rome’s old structure in the neighborhood of Sant’Angelo serves as one of the city’s numerous well-liked attractions for visitors. Julius Caesar cleared the area for the theater, but he was assassinated before it could be built. By 17 BC, the theater had advanced to the point where a portion of the ludi saeculares celebration took place there. It was finished in 13 BC, and Augustus officially inaugurated it in 12 BC, naming it after his nephew Marcus Claudius Marcellus, who had passed away in 23 BC. You can also chose to visit the temple of Apollo and many more antiquities. See here my photoblog of this day below!