The Opera del Tempio Ebraico di Firenze — the body that oversees the repair, maintenance, and restoration of the magnificent Florence synagogue and other Jewish heritage sites in Tuscany — is celebrating 25 years of activity.
It was established in June 1996, and an event last month in the garden of the Florence synagogue marked the anniversary with a look back at completed projects and presentation of current and future work.
Since its foundation, the Opera del Tempio Ebraico di Firenze has spent around €4 million on the restoration, repair, and redevelopment of Jewish sites in Florence, Siena, and the small town of Monte San Savino.
Most of the funding for past and current projects has come from state bodies and bank foundations, with a smaller part from the Union of Italian Jewish Communities (UCEI), the Florence Jewish community, private foundations, and the Opera itself.
Here’s a summary of major Opera projects, as presented on its web site and at the ceremony:
FLORENCE
The Opera’s main focus has been the Florence synagogue, a majestic Moorish-style building with the second-largest dome in Florence, which was designed by Mariano Falcini, Marco Treves and Vincenzo Micheli andinaugurated in 1882.
The Opera oversaw a full-scale restoration of the synagogue, completed in 2010. That work also included the redevelopment and enlargement of the Jewish Museum, which is housed in the same complex.
Restoration and maintenance work continues on the synagogue. Last year, the Opera carried out delicate work to consolidate the mosaic marble flooring of the sanctuary to prevent possible collapse. And urgent repairs were carried out on the cupola in 2018. Currently, the Opera is also repairing and restoring the railings of the internal stairs of the synagogue and has a project to restore the stained glass windows.
Renzo Funaro, the chair of the Opera, told JHE that restoration and cleaning work on the synagogue’s facade will begin by the end of the year.
Plans have also been drawn up for a further revamp and redevelopment of the Jewish museum.This would include restoration of an empty space between the inner and outer dome as a Holocaust memorial that could also serve as a meeting and event hall.
The Opera has also carried out work in both of the Jewish cemeteries in Florence: the Old Jewish Cemetery, established in 1777, and the New Jewish Cemetery, opened in 1884.
— The Opera has carried our extensive research, restoration, and preservation work at the Old Jewish cemetery. This has included the restoration of family tombs and other matzevot. In addition, the Opera has rescued, restored, and relocated around 290 matzevot that had lain under the terrain, as part of training program for Italian and Israeli students under the supervision of preservation experts.
— Major work at the New Jewish cemetery has included restoration of the main entrance (in 2013-2014) and the Beit Tahara (ceremonial hall, 2003-2004), both designed by architect Marco Treves, as well as the monumental Levi family tomb.
SIENA
The synagogue in Siena, located just off the central Campo, was inaugurated in 1786 as an extension of an earlier one, following the project of Giuseppe del Rosso.
From 2009 to 2011, the Opera carried out structural and other restoration work in the interior of the synagogue complex.Several rooms were restored to house the Jewish Museum.
The Opera has now designed a comprehensive project for the expansion of the Jewish Museum to include more of the synagogue complex.
The project foresees the restoration of the displayed artifacts and furniture, including the installation of a new lighting system, new audio-visual informational panels, and a new ticket office. The expected cost of this work is €492,137.16.
In September, restoration works will start on the synagogue façade, financed by the Florence Jewish community and the Opera.
The city’s Jewish cemetery was founded in the 16th century, and the oldest grave markers in the cemetery date back to the 17th century.
At the Jewish cemetery, the Opera’s projects have included restoring the internal pathways (in 2002-2006) and restoration and conservation of the ceremonial hall (2006-2008).
MONTE SAN SAVINO
The Opera recovered and carried out recovery and restoration work in the long-abandoned Jewish cemetery at the bottom of a steep hill on the outskirts of the Monte San Savino.
The cemetery covers a 3,000 square-meter area. In 2007 the Opera received permission from the local authorities to work in the area, which was immediately fenced, and an entrance gate was built. Moreover, the Opera also completed hydrogeologic works, and cleaned the whole area from overgrown vegetation.
According to the 1870 cadastral survey, the cemetery contained 160 matzevot at that time, but only 25 have been found to date, the oldest of which dates to 1512.
The Opera’s upcoming projects aim to discover and catalogue the missing matzevot, create internal pathways, and restore of some parts of the wall.
1 comment on “Italy: The Opera del Tempio Ebraico di Firenze marks 25 years of preserving Jewish heritage in Tuscany”
Its 10 years since I was married in the synagogue in Florence