Regola ...dell Natione Hebrea di Ferrara (Regulations of the Jewish Community of Ferrara), Ferrara: Stampa Camerale, 1683, 1704, 1734, 1757, 1777, 1787

6 printed pamphlets with similar titles, various sizes of folio. [128] ff., plus 4 inserted leaves, woodcut arms of the papal legate on titles, three of which are printed in red and black; stitched as issued, one with contemporary wrappers.

Although Jews had already lived in Ferrara for centuries, the challenges presented by the events of the 16th century impelled the disparate elements of  Ferrarese Jewish society to formally re-organize in 1573 under the title of "Università degli Ebrei di Ferrara."   Led by Isaac Ben Judah Abravanel (grandson of the biblical commentator), the community was run by eighteen delegates (later increased to 62) chosen by lot. Each member who possessed more than fifty scudi was obliged to contribute to the communal funds, and a commission of eight members was appointed to establish the sum to be raised and oversee its collection.

From 1598 to 1796 Ferrara was subject to the papacy, so that any regulations passed by the Università had to be published under papal auspices. Besides ordinary taxes, the community had to pay rents for houses in the ghetto, whether inhabited or not, and whether or not the tenants themselves could afford to pay. Increasing poverty required increasing sums for charity, taxes rose, and many wealthy people left the city. Regulations were passed to prevent anyone from removing his wealth from the city without permission, and a 2% tax was passed on the property of those who left.  Beneath the text of each regulation, (from 1704 onward) is a tally of the commission's vote in passing the measure.

While the text of the regulations is in Italian, five of the six pamphlets have additions in Hebrew emphasizing the importance of certain individual regulations and warning of the excommunication (herem) of anyone who failed to adhere to them. (Four of these are on inserted leaves of which one is manuscript, the fifth is a printed addition on the last page of text.)  The formal Hebrew decree of excommunication appended to these regulations served both to emphasize the authority of the "Università" and to insure that no individual could evade the regulation by professing ignorance of the Italian language. Among the promulgators of these writs of excommunication was Isaac Lampronti, communal leader and author of the encyclopedic Pahad Yitzhak.