Parshat Lekh Lekha. The beginning of the Age of the Patriarchs. Discussion of concept of ma'aseh avot siman le-banim, the deeds of the patriarchs are a sign, or pattern, for their descendants. The ... Show moreParshat Lekh Lekha. The beginning of the Age of the Patriarchs. Discussion of concept of ma'aseh avot siman le-banim, the deeds of the patriarchs are a sign, or pattern, for their descendants. The presence of God in history. This is the thirteenth lecture in the series; lecture 12 is not extant. Show less
Ethical dilemma: Abraham presents his wife, Sarah, as his sister. Ma'aseh avot siman le-banim. The concept of "brit" (circumcision) and entering the covenant. Apparently there were more lectures in... Show moreEthical dilemma: Abraham presents his wife, Sarah, as his sister. Ma'aseh avot siman le-banim. The concept of "brit" (circumcision) and entering the covenant. Apparently there were more lectures in the series which were not recorded. Show less
Unpublished commentary on the Book of Job. According to Yitsḥaḳ Yaʻbets the author of the commentary is Moses Kimḥi. A colophon gives the scribe as Yiśraʼel b.k. R. Avraham who titles his manusc... Show moreUnpublished commentary on the Book of Job. According to Yitsḥaḳ Yaʻbets the author of the commentary is Moses Kimḥi. A colophon gives the scribe as Yiśraʼel b.k. R. Avraham who titles his manuscript Ha-perush ṿeha-pasuḳ. On various other manuscripts he is known as Yiśraʼel ben Avraham Melamed Lago. On fol. 1r, in a different Ashkenazi script, there is a Seliḥot poem by Judah he-Ḥasid titled Elo-him be-Yiśraʼel. Includes marginal notes by Solomon Halberstam and Samuel David Luzzatto. French words in the commentary transcribed into Roman characters by Luzzatto in margins. Includes also excerpts from Yitsḥaḳ Yaʻbets' work Torat ḥesed. Title from Sotheby catalog "Important Hebrew manuscripts from the Montefiore endowment", New York, October 27 & 28, 2004, no. 5. Original manuscript on parchment and paper; 24 lines; written in brown ink in Byzantine script; text of Job vocalized and with cantillation notes; catchwords; quires numbered in Hebrew characters; modern foliation in pencil; fols. 96-97 torn and lacking upper left corner; fol. 98 torn without text loss; minor worming to final leaves; marbled paper over boards. Physical manuscript previously owned by Shelomoh Kohen (patron), Moses Montefiore (no. 6), Samuel David Luzzatto, and Solomon Halberstam (shelf no. 198). Show less
Poster with text of refusenik Boris Kochubievsky's letter to representatives of Soviet government expressing his desire to emigrate to Israel, with his portrait in background.
Yizkor and prayer book. Contains lists of deceased, synagogue prayer services, and memorial prayers. The scribe, Binyamin Zeʼev ben Elyaḳim Getsel Kats of Kempen, recorded the book's completion in ... Show moreYizkor and prayer book. Contains lists of deceased, synagogue prayer services, and memorial prayers. The scribe, Binyamin Zeʼev ben Elyaḳim Getsel Kats of Kempen, recorded the book's completion in 1765 in Breslau. The German colophon gives his name as Wolf Jacob von Kempen. There is a dedication in Hebrew on the t.p. by Moshe Segal as a memorial to his parents, Shelomoh and Esther Segal, dated 1802 or 1803. There the location is given as Auras (nowadays Uraz, a suburb of Wrocław). There are four unbound pages at the end of the book, two of which record the dates of the death of members of the scribe's family. The other two pages record names of deceased. The book is beautifully illustrated in black and white by the scribe. Of note: on p. 9a, in the service for berit milah, there are instructions for the contingency of the infant's being orphaned of one or both of his parents, indicating that it was a common phenomenon of the time. Lewin no. 235. For more information, see digital exhibit "Echoes of Auras: Memorbuch of a Jewish Community" at https://www.yu.edu/Libraries/Memorbuch Show less
Group interview with Sylvia Wallis, Sylvia Becker, and Andrew & Jean Balcombe. Recorded in Jerusalem, Israel. Wallis was a founding member of the Women's Campaign for Soviet Jewry (known as the 35'... Show moreGroup interview with Sylvia Wallis, Sylvia Becker, and Andrew & Jean Balcombe. Recorded in Jerusalem, Israel. Wallis was a founding member of the Women's Campaign for Soviet Jewry (known as the 35's) in Britain. Becker was a member of the 35's; edited a newsletter with ideas for action on Soviet Jewry; travelled Britain speaking and helping to organize Soviet Jewry groups; accompanied Avital Sharansky and others to Soviet Jewry groups; and travelled twice to vist refuseniks in Moscow. The Balcombes visited refuseniks in Moscow twice, in 1978 and 1979. Jean was an activist with National Council for Soviet Jewry and with Conscience (the Inter-denominational Committee for Soviet Jewry). Andrew was a member of the World Presidium for Soviet Jewry, chairperson of National Council for Soviet Jewry, and activist with Conscience. Show less
Poster with open letter of support to imprisoned refuseniks with their names listed, and a reproduction of painting "Searchlights in Prison Camp II" by imprisoned refusenik artist Boris Penson.
