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.
A nighttime song of praise
A nighttime song of praise I have
To sing before my Lord,
And in the day His help is at my side.
All my life, my soul has longed
To see the courts
Of God, to read the Torah.
And so I come betimes…
Shirat ha-yam (The Song at the Sea)
Then did Moses and the Children of Israel sing this song (Exodus 15:1). Before we explain the words of this song, it is appropriate to clarify its poetic structure. I maintain that we, the Israelite…
Another Year in Africa
At first Berka had avoided Hershl, but the latter persisted in his visits to Berka’s workshop, ignoring his deliberate rudeness. While Hershl spoke to him Berka hammered away at his last in silence…
The Lovemaking of I. B. Singer
A woman named Bella stayed behind to speak to me. Her hair was carefully waved, touched with streaks of blond, her eyes round and blue. She was not one of the shapeless old, but kept waist, hips, and…
Götz and Meyer
Götz and Meyer. Having never seen them, I can only imagine them. In twosomes like theirs, one is usually taller, the other shorter, but since both were SS non-commissioned officers, it is easy to…
Everything Is Illuminated
It was agreed that Grandfather and I would go forth at midnight of 1 July. This would present us with fifteen hours. It was agreed, by everyone except for Grandfather and I, that we should travel to…
On the Edge of the World
Every day at siesta time, when under the scorching heat of the sun the little town of Kenadza was breathing its last, Madame Karsenty would settle down on the sofa in the living room where her son…
Miriam’s Song
What if Miriam were remembered just as a person rescuing her brother Moses rather than as the heroine responsible for saving the man who would redeem the Jewish people from bondage?
Cyrus Cylinder
Cyrus Cylinder, Babylonia. In the inscription, Cyrus, the king of Persia (reigned 559–530 BCE), declares that he was chosen by Marduk, the god of Babylon, to free its citizens from the tyranny and…
Judicial Flogging in Egyptian Painting
Judicial flogging in Egyptian painting, Beni Hasan, Egypt, Twelfth Dynasty (1938–1759 BCE). A culprit is held down by three men as the court overseer watches. Biblical law included provisions for…
Cake in Shape of Nude Female (Replica)
Cake mold in shape of nude female (replica), Cyprus, ca. 980–500 BCE. The mold, probably dating to the Iron Age II or a century later, emphasizes the nose, breasts, and genital region and likely would…