Generous support provided by Manda and Albert Kalimian in Honor of Sabrina and Daniel Kalimian.

*Published sponsorship costs are subject to change due to conservation plan modifications and fluctuations in exchange rates.

Please contact kim@savevenice.org today for more information and the latest cost estimates.

The Scuola Levantina, or Levantine Synagogue, has served Venice’s Sephardic community in the Ghetto Vecchio since the 16th century. Traditionally dated to 1538, its foundation is associated with Jewish merchants from the eastern Mediterranean. Facing the small Campiello delle Scuole, alongside the Scuola Spagnola, the synagogue was extensively rebuilt between the 1680s and the early 18th century as the Levantine community grew in wealth and importance, taking on much of the form it retains today.

The present interior is largely a Baroque creation, reflecting both the prosperity of the congregation and the close relationship between Jewish patrons and Venetian artistic traditions. Elements of the façade have been attributed to the workshop of Baldassarre Longhena, one of the leading architects of Baroque Venice, while the richly carved wooden bimah inside is traditionally associated with the circle of the celebrated sculptor Andrea Brustolon. Together, these elements give the synagogue an architectural and decorative character that is unmistakably Venetian while remaining entirely shaped by the liturgical requirements of Sephardic worship.

From the street, however, the building is deliberately discreet. A modest entrance vestibule provides access to the synagogue on the upper floor, while on the ground floor lies a much smaller and more intimate space: the Luzzatto Midrash. Easily overlooked, this historic study and prayer hall preserves one of the most remarkable early ritual furnishings to survive in the Venetian Ghetto.

The Luzzatto Midrash originally belonged to the prominent Luzzatto family and stood in Campo del Ghetto Novo, where it functioned as a private yeshivah and place of prayer, dedicated to the study of Jewish law and scripture. When the building that housed it was demolished in 1836, the furnishings of the midrash were carefully dismantled and transferred to the Scuola Levantina. Their reinstallation allowed the room to retain its religious and educational function in a new setting while preserving a tangible link with its original home in the Ghetto Novo.

The focal point of the room is its Aron HaKodesh, or Holy Ark, a painted and gilded Renaissance Torah ark believed to be the oldest surviving example in the Venetian Ghetto. Its restrained proportions, delicate carved decoration, and surviving traces of gilding on green background evoke the visual culture of 16th-century Venice, when Jewish patrons and craftsmen engaged closely with the artistic language of the surrounding city while adapting it to the requirements of Jewish ritual. Its survival and later transfer from the Ghetto Novo to the Scuola Levantina give the ark an added historical significance, preserving both a rare liturgical furnishing and a tangible link to its original setting.

Today, the intimate Luzzatto Midrash forms a quiet counterpoint to the Baroque synagogue above, together reflecting the complementary roles of study, prayer, and communal worship in Venetian Jewish life.

As part of Save Venice’s restoration campaign in the 1976-1981, the Luzzatto Midrash underwent a program of refurbishment and conservation within the wider restoration of the Scuola Levantina. More than fifty years later, the space once again requires careful attention as age, use, and environmental conditions have affected a number of its historic surfaces and furnishings.

Several elements of the Luzzatto Midrash show signs of damage from wood-boring insects. The protective varnishes on the wooden furnishings have also darkened over time, particularly on the boiseries, reducing the visual clarity and warmth of the wood. The Aron HaKodesh shows areas of lifting and unstable polychromy that require conservation treatment.

The room is also affected by accumulations of dust and grime on high and difficult-to-access horizontal surfaces. Its painted inscriptions, executed on paper, canvas, and plaster, are likewise in need of conservation. The paper inscriptions mounted on canvas show creasing, undulation, and water staining, while those painted on canvas exhibit localized paint loss and heavily yellowed varnishes.

Large areas of paint loss and detachment are also visible on the wall panels, exposing the underlying plaster and traces of earlier interventions. These areas will require careful examination before an appropriate conservation treatment can be defined.

Unknown Artists (16th-19th centuries)
Luzzatto Midrash
16th century