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{en} Shlomo Simonsohn. Between Scylla and Charybdis: The Jews in Sicily. Leiden: Brill, 2011.

Abstract

"The history of the Jews in Sicily covers a period of over a thousand years, from Antiquity to the Expulsion, based on some 40,000 archival records, most of them hitherto unpublished. It illustrates the political, legal, economic, social and religious vicissitudes of the Jewish minority and its relations with the surrounding majority of Romans, Moslems and Christians. While the antecedents of the Jewish presence on the island are shrouded in mystery, more and more historical records surface with the passage of time.

Contents

Introduction; Chapter 1: From Rome to Spain; Chapter 2: The First Millennium; Chapter 3: Jewish Settlements (1); Map 1: Jewish Sicily until 1300; Chapter 4: From Roman Citizens to Servants of the Royal Treasury; Chapter 5: The Jewish Community (1); Chapter 6: Scholars and Poets; Chapter 7: Merchants, Artisans and Others; Chapter 8: Between Scylla and Charybdis; Chapter 9: The King's Jews; Chapter 10: Taxation and Imposts; Chapter 11: Jewish Settlements (2); Map 2: Jewish Sicily in the 14th and 15th Centuries; Map 3: Catania: The Jewish Quarter; Map 4: Messina: The Jewish Quarter.