Sample Sources
The sources below are those contained in our three curated collections—covering themes of Passover, Gender Roles, and Holocaust Resistance. They represent a fraction of the thousands of sources that will be available when the full site launches in 2024.
Seder tefilot yesharot u-varot (The Order of Upright and Pure Prayers)
Kabbalists prayed using the basic Jewish prayers, but added certain elements according to their own tradition. The prayers are often presented with kavanot (special devotional forms, meanings, and…
Printer’s Preface: Tsene rene
God, blessed be He, knew very well that the people of Israel would be scattered among the nations and that most of them would not be able to understand the holy tongue [Hebrew]. Therefore our sages…
Shāhzada va Ṣūfī (The Prince and the Sufi)
In the Name of God, May We Endeavor and Succeed.
I Behold God before my Eyes at All Times.
A Dedication to My Master, My Father, May He Live Forever.
Bottles
Mom was taken away, I don’t know exactly where. Dad says she is in a nice place where they take good care of her. I miss her…although I understand. Dad says she suffered from a sickening love for…
Phantom Pain
When I was born, Robert G. Mehlman was at the peak of his glory. He was more than a major talent. But within five years there wasn’t much of that glory left, and my mother sometimes compared him to a…
Commandments and Concerns: Jewish Religious Education in Secular Society
This book deals with the problem of religion in contemporary Jewish education. It grew out of my thinking and teaching about Jewish education, which made me realize that religion is always on the…
Shtetl
This woodcut was published in Petrograd (Saint Petersburg) after Aronson had left the Soviet Union. In it, Aronson combined elements of cubo-futurism and constructivism. Several figures can be spotted…
Come to Palestine
Raban was known as a designer, painter, and book illustrator but also designed at least two posters, including this one for the Society for the Promotion of Travel in the Holy Land. The poster’s…
Jew from Poland
Lerski’s portrait of a young Polish Jewish immigrant to Palestine is in his distinctive, expressionist style. Using mirrors and reflectors to emphasize the transformative powers of light, Lerski liked…
Portrait of Fanny von Arnstein
Fanny von Arnstein (née Itzig; 1758–1818) was born into a prominent Jewish banking family in Berlin and married a leading Viennese financier. She entertained many luminaries at her famous salon. Having…
A Jewish Wedding in South Russia
Of all festivities celebrated among the Jews in southern Russia, the wedding ceremony has suffered the greatest loss of characteristic elements of folk tradition. Even among the poorest, weddings are…