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.
Novelot ḥokhmah (Fallen Fruit of Wisdom)
[ . . . ] Now you know and are witness that I have composed several works on various topics. However, I did not write them in order to publish them; rather, I prepared them for my own use, to…
On Life’s Deception and Disillusion
Sad is the man who forgets God
without waking from the dream of his error,
and of the evil that awaits him is never aware
until his sin of his death is the cause.
In his obstinate and…
Tsaḥut bediḥuta de-kiddushin (A Comedy of Betrothal)
Amon and Deborah His WifeAmon:Proclaim to the citizens of our city that in joy and gladness we propose to marry our daughter Beruriah to the handsome Jedidiah, Sholom’s son. Our most…
Voices from a Time
I have no memory of that train trip, probably because there was nothing to remember. Our arrival in Vienna, on the other hand, impressed me. That city reminded me somewhat of Trieste, with its wide…
Multiculturalism versus Pluralism in Israel
Do Israelis have one culture or many cultures, or both one culture and many cultures? This question stems from three directions.
One direction is political. The Rabin assassination exposed a deep…
Ruling on the Kosher Lamp
I was asked by a resident in London concerning a portable electric lamp called “Kosher Lamp” which has a separate upper part which is made to direct the light or to cover it up altogether by twisting…
Portrait of Itzik Manger
Chaim Gliksberg was well-known for his portraits of literary figures. Here, he has pictured Itzik Manger, the celebrated Yiddish poet and playwright. Manger was particularly renowned for his modernist…
Portrait of Heinrich Heine
A German romantic poet and essayist, Heinrich Heine (1797–1856) was born in Düsseldorf. Unsuccessful in his early business career, he studied law, and settled in Berlin in 1821. There he met with…
Torah Ark Curtain (Gördes)
This Torah ark curtain from Gördes, Turkey, features an archway flanked on either side with double columns and a hanging lamp, a motif common to both Islamic prayer rugs and mats and Ottoman Torah ark…
Kiddush Cup and Wine Carafe (Amsterdam)
This kiddush cup and wine carafe by the master glass engraver Daniel Henriques de Castro displays his delicate technique, known as stippling. Though it is most common for kiddush cups, used for the…
History of Jews in Kraków and Kazimierz, 1304–1868
In 1867, starting in Austria, the idea of equality made its way into normal constitutional life in Galicia. This wasn’t an easy thing to accomplish, due to prejudices that had been cultivated over…
On the Division between Zionism and Religion
[ . . . ] I find myself obliged to commence with a general preface, which I bring to the fore on each occasion that I have occasion to speak about the way of “the Mizrachi” [movement] and its value…