Name of Object:

Gold to the country from the [Italian] colony in Tunisia

Other name of the Object (second name):

Receipt for the donation of gold to Italy, in support of its war effort during World War I

Name in original language:

Oro alla patria dalla colonia tunisina

Location:

Livorno, Italy

Holding Institution:

State Archives of Livorno

 About MIBACT | State Archives of Livorno, Livorno

Holding Institution (original language):

Archivio di Stato di Livorno

Date of Object:

Tunis, 1917

Description:

This receipt certified that Leone Moreno (Tunis, 1852-1940) “donated gold to the country” in order to support Italy’s war effort during WWI. Leone was the grandchild of Mosè Moreno, a Jew from Livorno who migrated to Tunis around 1830. In Tunisia, the Morenos became successful in business. Leone’s father and brothers were traders and bankers, while Leone was an agricultural entrepreneur.
He was a nationalist and was one of the Italians who actively resisted the French policy of assimilating the Italians in Tunisia. He employed only Italian workers on his estate and supported the Società Dante Alighieri, a society aimed at promoting Italian language and culture abroad. Leone Moreno also generously supported the Italian hospital Giuseppe Garibaldi and the Italian orphanage “Principe di Piemonte”.

Type of Object

Archival document

Archival or Bibliographical Reference:

ASLi, Famiglia Moreno di Tunisi, b. 13

Citation of this web page:

Massimo Sanacore "Gold to the country from the [Italian] colony in Tunisia" in "Sharing History", Museum With No Frontiers, 2026.
https://sharinghistory.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=object;AWE;it;108;en

Prepared by: Massimo Sanacore
Copyedited by: Anne Dowell

MWNF Working Number: IT1 108