New Synagogue of Livorno

The New Synagogue of Livorno (Tempio Maggiore) was built in 1962 to replace the 17th-century original, which was destroyed in World War II Allied bombing raids. The current building is a striking example of mid-century sacred architecture — concrete and marble, with a large dome and a light-filled interior designed to evoke the grandeur of the lost original.

The synagogue stands as a reminder of Livorno's unique history as a city of tolerance. The Leggi Livornine of 1593 made Livorno one of the most welcoming cities in Europe for Jews, conversos, Greeks, and Armenians — at a time when most Italian cities had strict restrictions on non-Christian communities. The adjacent Piazza Benamozegh is named for the 19th-century Livornese rabbi and philosopher Elijah Benamozegh, one of the most important Jewish thinkers of the modern era.

things to do sight architecture
A story
Livorno's Jewish community was established under the 1593 Leggi Livornine, which offered freedom of worship and legal protection to all settlers — decades before most of Europe extended such rights. By the late 17th century, the city had one of the largest and most prosperous Jewish communities in the western Mediterranean, and Livorno became a centre of Hebrew printing and Sephardic scholarship.

Other places in Things to Do in Livorno