Data sheet
Name: Monument for Elia Lattes
Location: field 5, no. 1
Author: Riccardo Pitter (sculptor)
Construction date: 1925
Elia Lattes was born in Venice in 1843 and died in Milan in 1925. His father, Abramo (1809-1875), served as the Chief Rabbi of Venice from 1839 to 1875.
From 1868, he was a Professor of Ancient History at the Scientific and Literary Academy of Milan, and in 1916 he became a Corresponding Member of the Lincei Academy. He focused particularly on the Etruscan language, using the combinatorial method, and compiled an Etruscan lexical index.
He established funds in memory of his father and brother Moses, dedicated to the study of Jewish literature, and donated numerous volumes of Jewish literature to the Brera Library, the Sforza Castle Museums, the Philological Circle, and the Lombard Institute.
The sculptor Riccardo Pitter (1899-1976) from Aviano, a student of Wildt and Castiglioni, created a bronze medallion featuring his face. The inscription reads: “In investigating the Etruscan mystery, in giving generously with wise judgment, he employed the long day well.”
