I

Letters to Editor I

Professor Clarifies Facts on Jews of Rome

is not the original dwelling ed out across from the site
Editor, The Jewish News:
where Jews were walled into
Ben Juarez's fine article area of our earlier Roman an enforced ghetto in the re-
on the Jews of Rome was compatriots.
It was not until the medi- gion of Monte Cenci. The
marred by a number of little eval era that the Jewish Jewish old folks' home is lo-
vexing errors. Certainly, Quarter spilled across the cated on the Island in the
Pope Paul IV did not force
Tiber River to the present Tiber, about half way be-
the Jews into the ghetto in location of the ghetto. Paul tween the ancient settlement
1955. A more likely date IV found it convenient to and the relatively recent
would have been 1556.
wall the area because, by ghetto.
Though the ghetto was that time, a large portion of
The discussion, of course,
then called Seraglio degli the Jewish population had raises question regarding
Ebrei, I'm not rertain that moved from what was ap- the definition of ghetto. I am
this term had a romantic parently the earlier ethnic really sorry that I bring this
tinge to it. True, a sultan's colony.
problem forth. Does ghetto
harem may be secluded in a
Trastevere (Across the imply compulsion? Our con-
seraglio, the word is origin- Tiber) was the habitation temporary meaning certain-
ally early Italian and had site of Jews and other orien- ly decrees so. I guess it de-
reference to a cage for wild tals in classical times. Jew- pends on etymology of the
beasts.
ish merchants, ship chand- word. That is a problem!
There is a long standing,
' , e Arch of Titus carving lers, warehousers and others
not depict slaves carry- lived in the west bank sec- dispute among scholars re-
f
ing the seven-branched can- tion along the river (Ripa garding the source of the
delabra from the Barbarian Grande) adjacent to the term. Many argue, including
invasions of the 5th Century Piazza dei Mercanti (Place most Italian dictionaries, that
CE. Rather, this bas relief of the Merchants).
ghetto is derived out of
was built into the arch in
Evidence of early and re- Venetian Itatian gheto which,
81 CE and exhibits Jewish cent Jewish settlement is to in turn, stems from getto,
slaves carrying the seven- be found in various places the location of a foundry. It
branched lampstand in the in Trastevere.
is argued that the Jews of
victory procession of Titus.
Piazza in Piscinula (Place Venice were confined to a
The golden lampstand, ac- of the Baths) may well have little island adjacent to a
cording to tradition, was lost been the site of a synagogue. brass foundry. Hence, Ghetto
during the Gothic invasion A modern Jewish community Vecchio (Old Ghetto) comes
of Rome under Alaric in 410 school is to be found on the from the 16th Century en-
CE.
Lungotevere Sanzio. An an- closure of our co-religionists
Mr, Juarez is correct in cient Jewish cemetery exist- in a most undesirable spot.
noting that one member of ed in Monte Verde Vecchio. I find this derivation to be
the Christianized Pierleoni
Hence, for a long period a bit far fetched.
It seems to me that one
family ascended to the dis- of time Jewish life was play-
puted Throne of St. Peter.
Anacletus • II dei Pierleoni
claimed the papacy from
1130 to 1138. The occupant of
the chair, recognized as the
165th Pope, was Innocent II
(Gregorio Papareschi). He
served from 1130 to 1148 and
Anacletus, thus, is classed
as an anti-Pope.
Indeed, the old fish market
area of Rome defines the
region of the ghetto in which
the Jews were confined from
1556 to 1870. That, however,
•

lcauan norg BMW WIIICII
the dimunitive form of
borgo, a settlement or por-
tion of a city which is distant
from the center or developed
outside of the walls.
This is a most apt de-
scription of Trastevere, the
oldest known settlement of
Jews in Rome. That section
seems to have developed
prior to the advent of Chris-
tianity and had close ties
with a Jewish colony in the
ancient seaport of Rome,
Ostia.
LEONARD W. MOSS
Professor of Anthropology
Wayne State University

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Travelers to Lands
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Editor, The Jewish News,
Yugoslavia has lately be-
come the "place to go"
among some of our Jewish
brethren. The brochures of
all of our Jewish organiza-
tions who have travel plans
show trips to Yugoslavia and
other nonfriendly countries.
While Yugoslavia is a coun-
try that we know is against
us, there are other countries
which certainly aid the Arab
cause, such as France.
Yet, we keep on spending
money traveling to these na-
tions and purchasing their
products. It is terrible to
think that the money we
Jews spend in these coun-
tries, or on their products,
is helping to kill and maim
our brethren in the fighting
tow going on.
.Certainly, if the Arabs
threaten our very existence
with oil, we can do likewise
with our money. I feel that
we have pussy-footed around
long enough with our fear of
protecting the "Jewish im-
age" and not starting boy-
cotts, or other forms of
economic retaliation. As a
result, we continue to finance
the economic well-being of
nations who are not our
friends. I think it is time to
begin fighting back!
Sincerely,
EDITH ZAFFERN

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