The first documents indicating a Jewish presence in Mantua, Italy, date from 1145. The Jewish community grew substantially during the 1400s, when Roman and German Jews migrated to northern Italy.
Founded in 1478, the Scuola Grande di San Rocco became the richest of the Venetian scuole, religious confraternities that functioned as charitable organizations, mutual aid societies, and social clubs.
The artistic wealth within the Domus Aurea has been studied by historians and artists for centuries, but it was obscured by biological growth and mineral deposits after years of neglect.