GOOD RELATIONS Something exceptional and unprecedented, which included the intervention of Doña Gracia Mendes-Nasí, occurred in the city of Ancona, an important commercial port on the east coast of Italy. This city was established as a “papal state” in 1429. The Popes Clement III and Paul III tried to develop Ancona as a center of international trade. And to achieve this goal, they granted the city’s Jews permission to open banks and offer credit. On February 21, 1547, the pope invited “any person… from the kingdoms of Portugal… including New Christians [=anusim] to settle in Ancona.” Due to this pro-Jewish...