Printed Amulet

Abraham Bar Jacob

ca. 1700

Page of Hebrew text with image of naked figures and tree with serpent in middle, and border with columns, cherubs, and foliage.
This printed amulet to protect a woman in childbirth features a central scene depicting Adam and Eve and several animals in the Garden of Eden, with a snake coiled around the forbidden “tree of knowledge.” The inscription in the center also invokes the names of angels associated with banishing the demon Lilith, who, according to folklore, was Adam’s first wife. Psalm 121 is written at the bottom of the amulet. On the left is a cedar of Lebanon, below which is a cherub holding a quill and writing, and at the bottom is a figure holding a sun and moon and stars. On the right is a date tree, above another cherub, and below is King David holding a harp.

Credits

Courtesy GFC Trust / William L. Gross. Photo by Ardon bar Hama.

Published in: The Posen Library of Jewish Culture and Civilization, vol. 5.

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Creator Bio

Abraham Bar Jacob

d. ca. 1730

Nothing is known about the early years of Abraham bar Jacob, who as a young Christian pastor left the Rhine region and settled in Amsterdam. There, he took the name Abraham bar Jacob after converting to Judaism. Bar Jacob became a well-known and influential engraver, printmaker, and artist. His works include frontispieces and engravings for books printed by Amsterdam printing houses, an amulet for women in childbirth, and possibly an engraved portrait of Rabbi Isaac Aboab. Among his most famous works is the Amsterdam Haggadah of 1695, which includes a detailed map of the Holy Land. In his later works, bar Jacob’s signature has been obliterated or concealed, possibly because he was a convert.

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