The museum is in Padua’s Old Town, in the area of the Ghetto, inside the building of the former German Synagogue, the Scola Grande, built in 1682. In May 1943 the building was almost completely destroyed by flames set by the Fascist Squadrons and then restored by Padua’s Jewish Community in the post war period. In the museum are displayed traditional objects of the Jewish community, among which some Ketubboth (Wedding contracts), ritual objects for family use (candlesticks, spice-holders, plates for Pesach, glasses for Kiddush) and ritual objects for the synagogue (crowns, Sefer Torah, prayer books, musical scores, precious textiles). An Egyptian Mameluke manufacture parokhet dating back to the first half of the 16th century and Megikllath Ester manuscripted and decorated on parchment (18th century) are noteworthy.
A central and innovative element of the museum is the video installation “A generations goes, a generation comes” by the film conductor Denis Brotto. Ten representative personalities of history of the Jewish Community in Padua “get alive” together with the history and the places of the Jewish life.