Showing Results 1 - 10 of 34
Born to converso parents and baptized as Manoel Dias Soeiro, Menasseh Ben Israel moved as a boy with his family to Amsterdam, where they reverted openly to Judaism. In 1626, he established the first…
This belled gilt-silver Torah finial topped with a crown was made in Amsterdam and has been attributed to master silversmith Pieter van Hoven, who lived near the Jewish quarter and is best known for…
This was the first printed map of the land of Israel in Hebrew. It was based on an earlier map by a Christian, Kruik van Adrichem, but Jacob Tsaddik removed the illustrations of the life of Jesus that…
The frontispiece of this book of penitential prayers published in Amsterdam, Tikun li-kro’ laylah va-yom (A Tikkun to Read Day and Night) has a three-tiered illustration. The top level depicts Moses…
When Jacob ben Abraham Tsaddik created the first printed map of the Holy Land in Hebrew, he included this portrait of himself. The Hebrew under the image of the sun intertwined with a Star of David…
In 1735, Eleazar ben Samuel arrived in Amsterdam to take up the post of chief rabbi of the Ashkenazic community. To mark the occasion, Joel ben Lippman Levi minted a medal. On the front of the medal…
This engraving portrays Isaac Aboab da Fonseca, a rabbi, kabbalist, and preacher, born in Castro Daire, Portugal, to a family of New Christians. He arrived in Amsterdam with his family at the age of…
The book of Esther is chanted aloud from a scroll (megillah) on the holiday of Purim. This example from the Netherlands is lavishly decorated, with the Hebrew text framed by arcades between which are…
This Haggadah from Amsterdam was printed by Joseph ben Abraham Athias and is adorned with elaborate copper etchings by artist Abraham Bar Jacob. It was the first Haggadah to include these sorts of…
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…
