Features On The Jewish World

The very first Hebrew book printed in London for Jewish use, this publication was named Ma'aseh Rav, and was printed by a gentile printer.

In a previous Jewish Press article, I displayed and discussed the cards issued for the first seven Congresses, and I present here the official cards from the Eighth Zionist Congress through the Thirteenth Congress along with a brief discussion of the highlights of each.

Typically, when a museum discovers that they have a fake of any sort in their collection, it is handled quietly, with the object being removed from display, never to be seen again.

The impact of his work was great, to the extent that several Christian Hebraists translated the work, and several such manuscripts are still extant.

A police search of Hilsner’s house yielded no incriminating evidence, and he maintained that he had left the city on the afternoon of the murder long before it could have been committed.

Freud joined the Viennese branch of B'nai Brith in 1897 and became an active member during his first years, serving as the organization’s president and working actively to grow the chapter and to recruit Jewish friends to the organization.

Finding the signature of the Chida (or Chid”a, as it is an acronym), R. Haim Yosef David Azulai (1724 – 1806), is one of the pleasures in life that I am to repeat to infinity.

Taylor worked to save European Jews from the Holocaust and he interacted directly with the pope in this effort.

Today, we have a clear picture of the true function of Robinson’s Arch: it was part of a monumental staircase that connected a gate in the Temple Mount’s outer precincts with the Herodian Street far below.

He also gave thousands of dollars each to existing 23 Jewish congregations in 14 states – especially the Newport, RI synagogue, where he endowed the cemetery in which he was laid to rest, the final surviving member of the Touro family line.

I present here from my collection several of my favorite artistic depictions of this most sacred Jewish site.

Antiquarian booksellers are often propelled by the excitement that occurs when you stumble across an important discovery that sheds light on otherwise unknown areas.

The first reference to the Jewish practice of written Rosh Hashana greetings may be found in the Book of Customs of Rabbi Yaakov ben Moshe Moelin (1365-1427), aka the Maharil, the religious leader of German Jewry in the fourteenth century.

It is a time for forgiveness, repentance, and building character traits like being humble, kind, optimistic, and grateful. It is also time of reflection and return. It’s a return not only to our heritage, but to our true inner selves.

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An unpublished manuscript I acquired recently by one of the greatest Italian Rabbis of the 18th century was an exciting find for me. Being a collection of halachic rulings and chiddushim, it was written by Rabbi Yishmael Ha-Kohen, rabbi of Modena.

Few people know that Bloch was also an accomplished photographer, a passion that began early in his teens and through which medium he further exhibits his extraordinary compositional skills.

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Although the Pavilion drew broad and favorable media coverage and won awards, it ultimately failed in its greater purpose: to sell the nations of the world on the idea that Jewish resettlement of Eretz Yisrael was both a solution to the Jewish Question and in the interests of the international community.

In some of his book catalogs that have survived, as well as ads he placed in newspapers promoting his bookstore, we find many titles from European presses of the day, indicating that he was in close contact with the printing presses of Europe.

A medical maverick, he frequently challenged prevailing medical norms, maintaining his faith in his own theories and abilities in the face of strong opposition, and he was colorful and combative when defending his most enduring contributions to medicine.

He was a prolific writer, writing more than 160 books, many of which were printed.

Although he presented a supremely confident public face, Dewey was deeply concerned that the Regents would fire him. Accordingly, he and his two greatest supporters, Funk and Singer, commenced an ambitious campaign designed to skew the Regents’ decision in Dewey’s favor, focusing particularly on the Jewish community.

These calendars, printed in the late 19th and first half of the 20th century, shed a bright light on the life in these unique communities and cultures and the language spoken by the Jews within, Ladino (Judeo-Spanish).

Halévy’s seminal work, La Juive (“The Jewess,”1835), essentially a “one-hit wonder” for him that became one of the cornerstones of the French repertory for a century, was one of the grandest of grand operas and included a formal ballet, major choruses, and spectacular processions and celebrations.

In the Shulchan Aruch, the Rema forbids marriage with Karaites, though historically, we have many records of Karaites rejoining the Rabbinate community and numerous rabbinical authorities have been recorded as allowing such marriages.

Dali was also influenced by his experiences in Spain, where Jewish culture has a long and complex history, and he may have been drawn to Jewish themes as a way to explore the intersection of different cultural traditions.

My introduction to this era was the purchase of a small celluloid pinback button which had a paper insert dated 1916 on the reverse.

This Letter was written by Rabbi Chaim Oizer Grodzinsky, dated 1938, a few months before his passing.

Innumerable bizarre theories are still floating around regarding the identity of Jack the Ripper, including one that identifies Charles Dodgson (aka Lewis Carroll, the author of Alice in Wonderland)...