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.
Tombstone of Rachel Pereira
Rachel Soares Pereira, who died in 1721 at the age of twenty-four, was married to Isaac Pereira. Floral motifs decorate the top of her gravestone, while the bottom panel contains a relief of a hand…
Tombstone Inscriptions (Curaçao)
Italics indicate that the text was written in Hebrew, not Portuguese.
Tombstone of Menahem Ventura
This tombstone for Menahem Ventura, son of Abraham Ventura, is one of only four that have survived from the Jewish cemetery in Bologna. (After the entire Jewish community was expelled from this town…
Tombstone of Mordecai Hezekiah Namias de Crasto (replica)
In reference to the deceased’s name, the central verse fragment on this monument reads “And Mordechai came before the king . . .” (Esther 8:1), and the top panel contains a low relief of a richly clad…
Tombstone of Manuel Levy Ximenes Belmonte and Esther de Pinto
Manuel Levy Ximenes Belmonte (1729) and Esther de Pinto (1741)
Tombstone of Abraham Pereira d’Azevedo
The first Jewish community was established in Kingston, Jamaica by refugees from Spain and Portugal after 1492. This tombstone in the cemetery of She‘are Shalom Synagogue marks the grave of Abraham…
Tombstone of Esther de la Pena Gabay Henriques
Born in Córdoba, Spain, Esther Gabay Henriques married Daniel de la Penha, a Spanish merchant in Rotterdam. The family coat of arms appears above the epitaph. Beneath is a low relief of the couple’s…
Tombstone of Abraham Cohen Pimentel
This tombstone is inscribed in memory of Abraham Cohen Pimentel, who served as rabbi of the Portuguese Synagogue (Esnoga) in Amsterdam, and also as hakham in the Hamburg synagogue. A student of Saul…
Tombstone Inscriptions (Jamaica)
Gravestone of honorable old lady Sra Rachel, wife of the wealthy citizen the honorable R. Jacob Fernandes Gill, deceased, seventh day of Passover, 22 Nisan 5486May her soul be…
Torah Mantle (Venice)
This Torah mantle, from about 1655, is embroidered with silk and gilt-silver thread and is richly decorated with curling, interlocking patterns. The crown dates from the middle of the nineteenth…
Torah Mantles (Netherlands)
These Torah mantles, thought to be created in the Netherlands, are embroidered and have fringed borders. The mantle on the right is sumptuously adorned with brightly colored flowers, along with panels…
Torah Mantle (Vienna)
This Torah mantle was made in Vienna in the eighteenth century. It is embroidered with silk and metallic thread, metallic ribbon, and has metallic fringes. Set against a red background, this mantle’s…