In the 17th century, Jews in Florence’s tiny ghetto struggled to earn a living by any means possible, including loan-sharking, rag-picking, and second-hand dealing. They were often viewed as an uncanny people with rare supernatural powers. Historian Edward Goldberg will share how businessman and aspiring scholar Benedetto Blanis used this mystical misperception to his advantage, seeking a grand position at the Medici Court and winning the admiration of Don Giovanni de’ Medici.

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