It consists of a rectangular area surrounded by a two-metre high wall. To the left of its iron gate, there is a marble plaque at the top that reads “Cimitero israelitico” (Jewish Cemetery). The perimeter wall was erected in 1915, replacing the previous hedge fence, with contributions from the Jewish Community and private donations. Count Giulio Boiardo granted a plot of land for a Jewish cemetery in 1547 to Vitale di Leone da Lodo, a representative of the Jewish community and a banker who had taken over the business of Bonaventura's descendants, the first Jews to settle in Scandiano. It was restored in the spring of 1987 thanks to the support of the Nobel Prize winner Rita Levi Montalcini and the Local Council, and it was inaugurated in October 1992. Today, the cemetery is a crucial place to host ceremonies for the International Holocaust Remembrance Day and European Day of Jewish Culture.

How to get to Scandiano

By car: From the A1 motorway - Milan, exit at Reggio Emilia. Follow the road signs for “Reggio Emilia Centro”, “Sassuolo”, and “Scandiano”.

From the A1 motorway - Bologna, exit at the Modena-Nord, take the Via Emilia towards Milan, and follow the road signs for “Reggio Emilia”, “Rubiera”, and “Scandiano”.

By train: From both the north and south, get off at Reggio Emilia station, then take the local train on the Reggio Emilia-Sassuolo line, or you can take the bus (for information: www.actre.it).

By plane: From Bologna Airport (www.bologna-airport.it), take the train to Reggio Emilia, and from there, take the local train to Scandiano or the A1 motorway. From Milan Airport (www.sea-aeroportimilano.it), take the train to Reggio Emilia, or the A1 motorway.

Scandiano is only a few kilometers from many cities in northern and central Italy: 60km from Bologna, 35 from Parma, 20 from Modena, 13 from Reggio Emilia, 180 from the Adriatic Riviera, 160 from Milan, 90 from Ferrara, 155 from Florence, 75 from Mantua, 100 from Piacenza, 95 from Verona.