During the last 25 years, locals and scholars have begun to uncover what was lost (expelled, really) more than 500 years ago. One of the most extraordinary discoveries was a mikveh, a Jewish ritual bathhouse, excavated one bucket of mud at a time by Amalia Daniele di Bagni and the association Siracusa III Millennio. Pictured…
Tag: mikveh
The Mikveh of Siracusa
One of the more fascinating things that I saw during my last trip to Sicily was behind the wall where this eclectic lantern is hanging. It’s the Bagno Ebraico, Mikveh, or Jewish Bath of Siracusa that was discovered 20 years ago, when Amalia Daniel di Bagni was renovating a building she purchased to build a…
Sicily’s Jewish Past
By nature of its position in the middle of the Mediterranean, Sicily has always been a multicultural land. Before the Spanish Inquisition (Yes, the Spanish ruled Sicily during this dark period (roughly 1478-1834).), Jews, according to scholar and author Jacqueline Alio, made up almost 7 percent of Sicily’s population. Palermo was home to a large…