Ghetto and lagoon

“Initially, the ghetto housed around 600 Jews, but by the end of the century, it had grown to over 2000, and this figure was expected to rise to 4000. Because the area where all those people ended up was quite limited, they had to build vertically. Therefore, the highest houses in the city are located in the ghetto, sometimes up to eight stories high, often with one shared staircase for two adjoining houses. They were the first Venetian apartment buildings, which must have looked like skyscrapers at the time. […] The ghetto was closed off with two robust gates that closed at night. At the expense of Jewish inhabitants, armed guards would patrol along the walls and canals.  To make matters worse, the Jews were not allowed to own anything and were required to pay a residency fee to the state, a kind of residence permit, which had to be renewed every five, seven or ten years. Jews were not allowed to enter the city on Christian holidays and they were not allowed to practice ‘noble’ professions, except medicine, because they were good at it. Because it suited the Venetians, Jewish doctors were allowed out of the ghetto at night to offer help.” Translated from: Luc Verhuyck ‘Venezia Anekdotische reisgids voor Venetië’ Athenaeum­­-Polak & van Gennep, Amsterdam 2011 p. 202