Can good neighbors be enemies?

For centuries, Jewish life had a regular place in the Arab world. Large Jewish communities felt as much at home in the Maghreb as they did in Libya, Egypt, Syria, Iraq and Yemen – a fact that is scarcely known in our climes.
Opinions differ when it comes to interpreting these historical ties. Were tolerance and freedom the hallmark of neighborly relations between the religions? Or was it oppression, enmity and persecution?

Nuanced perspectives rather than a simplistic view

The exhibition “Jewish life in the Arab world: Photographic memories of a bygone age” at the Seidlvilla is an invitation to a nuanced understanding of this still highly topical and, to some extent, fiercely contested issue.

It grew out of cooperation between Ludwig Spaenle, the Bavarian government’s commissioner for Jewish life, against antisemitism, for remembrance work and for historical heritage, and LMU’s Department of Jewish Studies. Judaist scholar Professor Ronny Vollandt curated the exhibition and provided valuable stimulus. He is an expert on Judaism in the Middle East, but he is also Director of the Munich Research Center for Jewish-Arabic Cultures, which he himself founded.

“Jewish life in the Arab world: Photographic memories of a bygone age”, Seidlvilla, Nikolaiplatz 1b, 80802 München. Opening hours: Mon-Fri 12:00 noon-7:00 p.m., Sat-Sun 12:00 noon-6:00 p.m. The exhibition runs until 24 October 2025.

Providing impetus

The photographs selected give a poignant insight into everyday life and religion, education and work, business life, the press and migration among Jewish communities from the 19th to the middle of the 20th century.

“The aim is not to glorify the past, but to remember it: to give visibility to the fact that Jewish-Arab history was shaped by diversity, proximity and enmity all at the same time,” the organizers state in a joint declaration on the exhibition. Their hope is that the event will “provide impetus for new perspectives on the present”.