Università israelitica di Reggio: Archivio Bassani
Item
Country
IT
Name of institution (English)
State Archives of Reggio Emilia
Name of institution (official language of the state)
Language of name of institution
ita
Contact information: postal address
Corso Cairoli 6, 42121 Reggio Emilia
Contact information: phone number
0039 0522451328
Contact information: web address
Contact information: email
as-re@beniculturali.it
Reference number
Archivio Bassani
Type of reference number
Archival reference number
Title (English)
Reggio Jewish University: Bassani Archive
Title (official language of the state)
Università israelitica di Reggio: Archivio Bassani
Language of title
ita
Creator / accumulator
Università israelitica di Reggio
Date(s)
1413/1838
Language(s)
heb
ita
por
spa
Extent
46 storage units
Type of material
Textual Material
Scope and content
The Archivio Bassani comprises documentation produced by the Jewish community of Reggio from the 16th to the early 19th century. It is organised by document type according to the following designations: Allegazioni (allegations, 1625-1787); Attestati (certificates, 1676-1793); Atti giudiziali e privati (judicial and private acts, 1539-1790); Bolle e costituzioni (bills and constitutions, 1429-1773); Conti (accounts, 1630-1792); Denunzie, estimi, comparti e perizie (complaints, investigations, and surveys, 1629-1796); Formule e memorie (forms and memoirs, 1429-1797); Gride (laws, 1541-1813); Istrumenti e testamenti (instruments and wills, 1604-1838); Lettere (letters, 1630-1796); Libri (books, 1546-1798); Licenze (licenses, 1631-1793); Liste e note (lists and annotations, 1429-1803); Mandati (mandates, 1675-1770); Memoriali e rescritti (memorials and rescripts, 1607-1807); Miscellanea (miscellany, 1656-1792); Ordini (orders, 1631-1803); Pragmatiche e regolamenti (pragmatics and regulations, 1553-1791); Privilegi (privileges, 1413-1797); Ricevute (receipts, 1610-1812); Scritture e obblighi (deeds and obligations, 1608-1817). The fonds also comprises an inventory compiled by Bassani in 1751.
Besides Reggio Emilia, the Archivio Bassani also includes materials related to other Italian cities. For instance, the "Volumen iurium hebreorum exteorum" is a collection of rules on the condition of the Jews of Mantua, Parma, Ancona, Rome, Modena, etc. It also comprises a significant number of volumes of copy letters, which contain rich information regarding the social and demographic profile of the Jewish community of Reggio, in particular in the 18th century.
Regarding the Sephardic diaspora, two documents should be highlighted. Firstly, a copy of the "Libro di Corame Rosso" (cancello IV), which records the privileges given to the Portuguese, Spanish, Italian and German Jewish merchants in the Este states. Secondly, Cancello IX contains the deliberations of the Portuguese Nation of Reggio Emilia from 1652 to 1672. This record is in Portuguese with some Hebrew, Italian and Judeo-Portuguese parts. The Portuguese original and its translation into Italian were published by Leoni (1992).
Besides Reggio Emilia, the Archivio Bassani also includes materials related to other Italian cities. For instance, the "Volumen iurium hebreorum exteorum" is a collection of rules on the condition of the Jews of Mantua, Parma, Ancona, Rome, Modena, etc. It also comprises a significant number of volumes of copy letters, which contain rich information regarding the social and demographic profile of the Jewish community of Reggio, in particular in the 18th century.
Regarding the Sephardic diaspora, two documents should be highlighted. Firstly, a copy of the "Libro di Corame Rosso" (cancello IV), which records the privileges given to the Portuguese, Spanish, Italian and German Jewish merchants in the Este states. Secondly, Cancello IX contains the deliberations of the Portuguese Nation of Reggio Emilia from 1652 to 1672. This record is in Portuguese with some Hebrew, Italian and Judeo-Portuguese parts. The Portuguese original and its translation into Italian were published by Leoni (1992).
Archival history
The Università israelitica di Reggio archive is one of the few Italian Jewish communities archives stored in State Archives. It is also one of the oldest archives of the Jewish communities settled in Italian territory, containing records that date back to 1413.
The fonds was incorporated in the Archivio di Stato di Reggio on March 11, 1909, after an agreement between the archive and the council of the Jewish community, then chaired by Giacomo Namias.
The collection is divided into two sections: the Archivio Bassani (Bassani archive) and the Archivio nuovo (New archive). These denominations follow the original names used when the records were still in the Jewish community archive. The designations were kept in the inventory composed at the time of the incorporation in 1909 and, a year later, in the summary inventory of the Archivio di Stato edited by Umberto Dallari.
The Archivio Bassani takes its name from Israel Biniamin Bassani, an 18th-century scholar and rabbi of the German-rite synagogue of Reggio, who was responsible for reorganising the archive. Bassani rearranged the archival records until 1790, the year of his death, implementing an organisation by subject. After Bassani's death, his criteria were not followed in arranging the documentation later accumulated in the archive. Then, it was established the archive's second section, the Archivio nuovo.
The Archivio Bassani was almost entirely microfilmed in the 1960s at the request of the Central Archives for the History of the Jewish People in Israel.
The fonds was incorporated in the Archivio di Stato di Reggio on March 11, 1909, after an agreement between the archive and the council of the Jewish community, then chaired by Giacomo Namias.
The collection is divided into two sections: the Archivio Bassani (Bassani archive) and the Archivio nuovo (New archive). These denominations follow the original names used when the records were still in the Jewish community archive. The designations were kept in the inventory composed at the time of the incorporation in 1909 and, a year later, in the summary inventory of the Archivio di Stato edited by Umberto Dallari.
The Archivio Bassani takes its name from Israel Biniamin Bassani, an 18th-century scholar and rabbi of the German-rite synagogue of Reggio, who was responsible for reorganising the archive. Bassani rearranged the archival records until 1790, the year of his death, implementing an organisation by subject. After Bassani's death, his criteria were not followed in arranging the documentation later accumulated in the archive. Then, it was established the archive's second section, the Archivio nuovo.
The Archivio Bassani was almost entirely microfilmed in the 1960s at the request of the Central Archives for the History of the Jewish People in Israel.
Administrative / Biographical history
The Jewish settlement in Reggio Emilia dates back to the first half of the 15th century. The number of Jews living in Reggio increased significantly after the permission given by Duke Ercole I in 1492 to the Jewish families expelled from Spain to settle in his domains. In the middle of the 17th century, there was another immigratory wave of Iberian and German Jews to Reggio. Between 1669 and 1670, at the behest of the regent duchess Laura Martinozzi, the ghetto was established. Then, there were 162 Jewish families (885 people) living in the city. Despite the segregation, this was a rather culturally rich moment of the Jewish ghetto of Reggio. Over the 18th century, the community gradually decrease. In 1790, the number of Jews living in Reggio was 798.
In 1796, when the Cispadane Republic, uniting the provinces of Modena, Bologna, Ferrara and Reggio Emilia under the French protection, was established, it was proclaimed the equality between Jews and Christians. However, after the fall of Napoleon and the return of the Este family to the government of Reggion, such equality ended. Duke Francesco IV again imposes heavier taxes on the Jewish population.
From the second half of the 19th century, the Jewish community of Reggio declined as a result of the migration of many families to other cities. Before the Second World War, very few families lived in Reggio Emilia, and the synagogue fell in disuse.
In 1796, when the Cispadane Republic, uniting the provinces of Modena, Bologna, Ferrara and Reggio Emilia under the French protection, was established, it was proclaimed the equality between Jews and Christians. However, after the fall of Napoleon and the return of the Este family to the government of Reggion, such equality ended. Duke Francesco IV again imposes heavier taxes on the Jewish population.
From the second half of the 19th century, the Jewish community of Reggio declined as a result of the migration of many families to other cities. Before the Second World War, very few families lived in Reggio Emilia, and the synagogue fell in disuse.
Access points: locations
Access points: corporate bodies
Access points: subject terms
Access points: document types
System of arrangement
Records are arranged by document type.
Finding aids
Links to finding aids
Existence and location of copies
Another copy of the "Libro di Corame Rosso" is in the Archivio di Stato di Modena, Archivio per materie, Ebrei, busta 14a.
Author of the description
Carla Vieira, 2022
Published primary sources
Linked resources
Filter by property
| Title | Alternate label | Class |
|---|---|---|
| Archivio di Stato di Reggio Emilia | Collections (official language of the state) | |
| הארכיון המרכזי לתולדות העם היהודי (The Central Archives for the History of the Jewish People) | Collections (official language of the state) |