Medieval Europe, an era of knights and cathedrals, was also a time of deep religious convictions and, unfortunately, often cruel social restrictions. In the center of many European cities of that period, there were special quarters where Jewish communities lived – ghettos. For many contemporaries, this word is associated exclusively with the tragedies of the 20th century, but its history goes much deeper, into the world of the Middle Ages and early modern times. Historians urge us to look at the ghetto not just as a prison, but as a complex, forced world, with its own rules, internal order, and, surprisingly, a rich cultural life that paradoxically flourished in conditions of isolation.

It was not just an isolated territory, but rather a unique social experiment that lasted for centuries, where isolation intertwined with internal cohesion, and survival went hand in hand with the preservation of millennia-old traditions. We invite you on a fascinating journey beyond the walls of the medieval ghetto to understand how people lived, what they breathed, and what challenges they faced, finding themselves in these peculiar “cities within a city.”