The People of the Book: First Presentation at the Central Library of Rome
Books are essential to understanding Italian Jewish history. They are not just objects of study, but also instruments of identity, memory, and social integration. This is the main theme of Am HaSefer: Readers and Bibliophiles in Jewish Italy Between the 17th and 20th Centuries. The book collects the proceedings of the conference organized by the Foundation for Jewish Cultural Heritage in Italy (FBCEI) on November 21, 2023. The volume was presented on February 18 at the National Central Library of Rome.
“The conference was an important event within the programs launched after the Foundation for Italian Cultural Heritage took over management of the National Library of Italian Judaism,” explained Dario Disegni, president of the FBCEI. “We wanted to enhance its role as not only a place of preservation but also as a center for research, conferences, and debates.”
The chosen theme was readers and bibliophiles in Jewish Italy between the 17th and 20th centuries. “It’s an important topic, but it hasn’t been thoroughly explored until now,” said Disegni. “We want to delve into the world of the Jewish book, its readers, and its collectors, both public and private, to stimulate continued research activities.”
It was no coincidence that the volume was presented at the National Central Library of Rome. “The library has been a key partner of the foundation, alongside the UCEI and the National Library of Israel, in the I-Tal-Ya Books project, which catalogs printed Jewish books within the Italian book heritage. The library hosts the project’s digitization on its own portal.”
The 2023 conference brought together Italian and international scholars and highlighted the variety of collections held by national and international libraries. This led to the decision to publish the proceedings, which have now been released by Edizioni di Storia e Letteratura. “The initiative had a significant impact, so the Foundation Board decided to preserve the results in a volume,” Disegni explained.
On March 10, the volume will be presented at the National University Library of Turin, which preserves important Jewish collections partially saved from the 1911 fire. Additional presentations are planned in various Italian cities, primarily in public institutional settings. “The goal is to bring the results of this conference to different contexts,” Disegni concluded. “It was a step forward in research, but much remains to be done to deepen the study of the Jewish book and its history.”
Translated by Caterina Mansani and revised by Elizabeth El Khoury, students at the Advanced School for Interpreters and Translators of the University of Trieste, trainees in the newsroom of the Union of the Italian Jewish Communities – Pagine Ebraiche.