Haven
From the time of its discovery,
America has been a haven for Europe's oppressed and persecuted.
In 1492, the same year that Christopher Columbus set sail for the
New World, the Spanish Inquisition reached its apogee. Spain expelled
its Jews, and, five years later, Portugal followed suit. The remnants
of Iberian Jewry found refuge in the cities and towns of Europe,
North Africa, and the Near East, and, in the first half of the
seventeenth century, some of their descendants established communities
in Dutch-ruled Brazil.
In 1654, Portugal recaptured Brazil
and expelled its Jewish settlers. Most returned to Holland or moved
to Protestant-ruled colonies in the Caribbean. A group of twenty-three
Jewish refugees, including women and children, arrived in New Amsterdam
hoping to settle and build a new home for themselves. In the years
that followed, the growing Jewish community pressed the authorities
to extend to them rights offered to other settlers, including the
right to trade and travel, to stand guard, to own property, to
establish a cemetery, to erect a house of worship, and to participate
fully in the political process.
For Jews, the promise of America
was deeply rooted in its commitment to religious liberty. George
Washington's declaration in 1790 to the Newport Hebrew Congregation
that this nation gives "to bigotry no sanction, to persecution
no assistance," provided the Jewish community with an early assurance
of America's suitability as a haven.
Prelude
References to Columbus's voyages and to his "discoveries" are
recorded in a number of early Hebrew printed books as well as in
other works by Jews related to navigation and exploration. For
Jews forced to practice their faith in secret, the New World offered
the prospect of practicing Judaism in the open. Other Jews saw
in the newly discovered lands possibilities for economic opportunity
and adventure, while some, like sixteenth-century scholar and geographer
Abraham Farissol, may have seen the discovery of the New World
as a harbinger of the messianic era.
Abraham ben Samuel Zacuto (ca. 1450-ca. 1515).
Tabule
tabularum
celestium.
Leira: Samuel Dortas, 1496.
John B. Thatcher Collection.
Rare Book and Special
Collections Division (1)
|
Astronomical Tables for Columbus
These tables prepared by astronomer and rabbi, Abraham Zacuto,
were published in 1496 by the last of the Jewish printers
in Portugal, Abraham Orta, one year before the Jews were
expelled. Christopher Columbus is reported to have used astronomical
tables prepared by Zacuto on his journeys of exploration.
|
The First Biography of Columbus in a Hebrew Book
The lower portion of the Latin commentary on the right-hand
side of this page provides the first description of Christopher
Columbus and his discoveries in a Hebrew book. The notation
about Columbus is a digressive comment occasioned by the
words "the end of the earth" in verse 4 of chapter 19 of
the Psalms. The learned commentator was eager to inform the
reader of the intrepid Genoese who had encountered "the ends
of the earth."
|
Bible. Psalms. 1516.
Psalterium
[Hebrew, Greek, Arabic, etc.].
Genoa: 1516.
Rare Book and Special
Collections Division (2)
|
Abraham Farissol (ca. 1451-ca. 1525).
Igeret
orhot
'olam.
Venice: 1586.
Hebraic
Section (3)
|
A "Map" of the New World in an Early Hebrew Book
In this pioneering work on geography, the shield-like figure
is labeled "New Land" in Hebrew,. The author, Abraham Farissol,
informs the reader of "the three areas of habitation, Asia,
Africa and Europe . . . also of the far-off islands recently
discovered by the Portuguese . . . of the River Sambatyon,
and of unknown places where Jews reside, the borders of the
Land of Israel and "Paradise on earth" and of the discovery
of a New World, a fourth area of habitation" Some have interpreted
Farissol's interest in the newly discovered lands as a sign
of his belief in the imminence of messianic redemption.
|
An Early View of Dutch Recife
The title page of this early work on Dutch Brazil includes
an engraved map featuring a view of Recife. This book was
published in Amsterdam in 1652--just two years before the
Portuguese conquered Recife and its Jews were expelled.
|
Pierre Moreau (fl. 1651-1652).
Klare en waarachtige beschryving
van de leste beroerten en afval der Portugezen in Brasil.
. . .
[History of the Latest Troubles in Brazil between the Dutch
and Portuguese . . .].
Amsterdam: J. Hendriksz, 1652.
Rare Book and Special
Collections Division (4B)
|
"To Bigotry, No Sanction"
For Jews, the promise of America was deeply rooted in its commitment
to religious freedom. The correspondence in 1790 between Moses
Seixas, on behalf of Newport's Hebrew Congregation, and George
Washington, in which Washington wrote that the United States gives "to
bigotry no sanction, to persecution no assistance," affirmed this
commitment. In an 1818 letter from Thomas Jefferson to Mordecai
Manuel Noah, Jefferson noted that "more remains to be done, for
altho' we are free by law, we are not so in practice." In the more
than two hundred years that have followed Washington's letter,
America's Jews have communicated often with their elected representatives,
including presidents, to ensure that the promise of America was
realized in practice.
Moses Seixas (1744-1809) to
George Washington (1732-1799)
Manuscript letter, August 17, 1790
George Washington Papers
Manuscript Division (5)
|
The Hebrew Congregation of Newport Writes
to George Washington
The Hebrew Congregation (Jeshuat Israel) in Newport, Rhode
Island, presented this congratulatory address on behalf of "the
children of the stock of Abraham" to President George Washington
on August 17, 1790. The address, signed by Moses Seixas,
marked the occasion of the president's visit to Newport.
Seixas's text refers to past persecutions of the Jews and
then lauds the new nation's commitment to religious liberty.
He writes: "Deprived as we heretofore have been of the invaluable
rights of free citizens, we now . . . behold a government
erected by the Majesty of the People--a government which
to bigotry gives no sanction, to persecution no assistance.
. . ."
|
President Washington Responds
President Washington sent a gracious reply in 1790 to the
Newport Hebrew Congregation for their congratulatory message
sent on August 17, 1790. This copy of Washington's outgoing
correspondence records the president's words as they echo
those of Moses Seixas: "It is now no more that toleration
is spoken of as if it was the indulgence of one class of
people that another enjoyed the exercise of their inherent
natural rights. For happily the government of the United
States, which gives to bigotry no sanction, to persecution
no assistance, requires only that they who live under its
protection should demean themselves as good citizens, in
giving in all occasions their effectual support."
|
George Washington (1732-1799)
to Moses Seixas (1744-1809).
Letterbook copy in the hand of
Washington's secretary, 1790.
Page 2
George Washington Papers.
Manuscript Division (6A)
|
Jefferson on Religious Pluralism
Jacob De La Motta, a native of Savannah, received a medical
degree from the University of Pennsylvania. De La Motta eventually
returned to Savannah and established a successful medical
practice. In 1818, he delivered a discourse on the dedication
of Savannah's first synagogue in 1820. De La Motta sent a
printed version of his 1820 discourse to Thomas Jefferson,
who responded with comments on the true meaning of religious
liberty in a pluralistic democracy: "The maxim of civil government
being reversed in that of religion, where it's [sic] true
form is, 'divided we stand, united we fall.'"
|
Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826)
to Jacob De La Motta (1789-1845).
Manuscript letter, September 1, 1820.
Thomas Jefferson Papers.
Manuscript Division (8)
|
Jacob De La Motta (1789-1845).
Discourse, Delivered at the
Consecration of the Synagogue of the Hebrew Congregation.
Savannah: Russell & Edes, 1820.
Rare Book and Special
Collections Division (8A)
|
Maryland's "Jew Bill"
Maryland's constitution, adopted in 1776, required that
public office holders declare their belief in the Christian
religion. Beginning in 1818, Jews and liberal Christians
endeavored to amend this law through what became known as
a "Jew Bill"--a bill that extended to Jews rights formerly
reserved only for Christians. Displayed here are printed
compilations of speeches in favor of the Jew Bill by H.M.
Brackenridge and William Worthington. Brackenridge noted
that his address in 1818 was "published by the Jews of Baltimore
and widely circulated." In arguing for passage of the bill,
Worthington cited George Washington's 1790 letter to the
Hebrew Congregation of Newport to prove that religious freedom
was one of the nation's core principles. After eight years
of persistent advocacy, the Jew Bill was passed in 1826.
|
William G.D. Worthington.
Speech on the Maryland Test
Act 1824 .
Baltimore, 1824: Printed by W. Wooddy.
General Collections (9)
|
H.M. Brackenridge (1786-1871).
Speeches on the Jew Bill in the House of Delegates
of Maryland by H.M. Brackenridge, Col. W.G.D. Worthington,
and John S. Tyson, Esquire.
Philadelphia: J. Dobson, 1829.
General Collections (10)
|
Making a Community
The early Jewish settlers made considerable efforts to fulfill
individual and communal religious obligations. They erected synagogues,
published books, and created ritual objects--activities testifying
to the deep pull of tradition as well as the powerful hold of community.
The life of Abigail Franks, colonial Jewry's great letter writer,
embodies the tension between adherence to Jewish traditions and
full participation in society-at-large-- a tension that has characterized
the Jewish encounter with America from the earliest days to the
present.
Francis Maerschalck (d. 1776).
A Plan of the City of New
York from an Actual Survey, anno Domini M{D}CCLV .
New York: G. Duyckink, 1755.
Enlarged version
Engraved map.
Geography and Map
Division (11)
|
New York in the Mid-Eighteenth Century
This early map of New York reflects the extraordinary diversity
of the city in the eighteenth century and its hospitality
to newcomers. The map provides locations for the houses of
worship of Quakers, Lutherans, Catholics, Moravians, Presbyterians,
Baptists, and Jews. Marked on this map is the Mill Street
location of America's first synagogue, Shearith Israel (The
Remnant of Israel). Though the congregation continues to
this day, neither the original synagogue building nor the
street on which it was located has survived.
|
The Bay Psalm Book
Printed by Stephen Daye in 1640, the Bay Psalm Book is the
first book printed in the English settlements of America.
Displayed here is its preface, which includes five Hebrew
words, three of which--the Hebrew words for psalms, hymns,
and spiritual songs--are displayed on this page. This marks
the first appearance of Hebrew in a work printed in what
is now the United States.
|
" Bay Psalm Book"
[The Whole Booke of Psalmes Faithfully
Translated into English Metre].
Page 2 - Page
3
Cambridge, Massachusetts: Stephen Daye, 1640.
Rare Book and Special
Collections Division (12)
|
Dutch-English Torah Scroll,
late seventeenth-early eighteenth century.
Additional view
Parchment scroll with wooden staves.
Moldovan Family Collection.
Hebraic
Section (13)
|
A Seventeenth-century Torah Scroll
This Torah scroll was most likely penned in Amsterdam, in
the Spanish and Portuguese style, based on a seventeenth-century
typographic font. When Jews returned to England, this variation
of the Sephardic script was utilized by Torah scribes there
as well as by the earliest American scribes. The leftmost
column on display here includes the Hebrew verse from the
Book of Leviticus, chapter 25, verse 10, "Proclaim Liberty
throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof," which
is inscribed on Philadelphia's Liberty Bell.
|
Colonial Torah Ark Lintel
In colonial times, when synagogues were scarce, traditional
Jews in cities without synagogues conducted prayer services
in their homes. This hand-carved wooden lintel was affixed
horizontally above the opening of Joseph Simon's personal
Torah ark in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. In the lintel's center
is a depiction of the two tablets symbolizing the Decalogue
(the ten commandments) and below it the Hebrew saying, "Know
before Whom you are standing," a phrase that often appears
in synagogues on the ark lintel or above the reader's lectern.
|
J. Simon.
Torah Ark Lintel
(Lancaster, Pennsylvania, mid-eighteenth century).
Wood.
Courtesy of the American Jewish Historical Society,
New York and Newton Centre, Massachusetts (15)
|
Myer Myers (1723-1795).
Silver rimonim [Torah finials],
(New York, mid-eighteenth century).
Silver and brass with parcel gilding.
Courtesy of Touro Synagogue Congregation Jeshuat Israel,
Newport, Rhode Island (21)
|
Colonial Silversmith Myer Myers
Born in New York in 1723, Myer Myers was a skilled silver
and goldsmith who created the first American examples of
Jewish ceremonial objects. He served as president of New
York's Congregation Shearith Israel three times and created
silver rimonim (Torah finials) for synagogues in
New York, Newport, and Philadelphia. Displayed here are the
finials belonging to Newport's Touro Synagogue, which would
have been placed over the handles of the scroll as adornment.
|
The First Published Jewish Sermon
This, the first American Jewish sermon to be published,
was preached at Newport's synagogue by an emissary from the
Holy Land, Haim Isaac Karigal. The sermon was delivered on
May 28, 1773, to celebrate Shavu'ot, one of the
three Jewish pilgrimage festivals. The sermon, which was
preached in Spanish interspersed with Hebrew, was translated
into English by Abraham Lopez.
|
Haim Isaac Karigal (1729-1777).
A Sermon Preached at the
Synagogue, in Newport, Rhode Island, Called "The Salvation
of Israel. . .
."
(May 28, 1773).
Newport, Rhode Island: S. Southwick, translated by Abraham
Lopez, 1773.
Rare Book and Special
Collections Division (14)
|
Gomez family etrog holder,
ca. eighteenth century.
Silver.
Courtesy of the American Jewish Historical Society,
New York and Newton Centre, Massachusetts (16)
| A Mustard Pot Becomes an Etrog Holder
This silver mustard pot was transformed by New York's Gomez
family into a Jewish ceremonial object when they used it
to store the etrog (citron), a central component
of the holiday of Sukkot, which celebrates the fall
harvest.
|
An Early Map of Newport, Rhode Island
This early hand-colored map of Newport, Rhode Island was
produced in London in 1777. Referenced on the map are the
houses of worship of the various religious groups present
in Newport at the time, including Catholics, Congregationalists,
Baptists, Quakers, and Jews.
|
Charles Blaskowitz
A Plan of the Town of Newport.
London: William Faden, 1777
Enlarged version
Hand-colored engraved map
Geography and Map
Division (17)
|
Old Jewish Synagogue
[Touro Synagogue],
Newport, Rhode Island, ca. 1910
Postcard
Hebraic
Section (18)
| Newport's Jeshuat Israel (Touro) Synagogue
Designed by noted colonial architect Peter Harrison and
opened in 1763, the Jeshuat Israel synagogue in Newport,
Rhode Island, renamed Touro Synagogue in the nineteenth century,
is the oldest standing synagogue in the United States. On
the occasion of its designation as a "National Historic Site" in
1946, President Harry S Truman wrote, "The setting apart
of this historic shrine as a national monument is symbolic
of our national tradition of freedom, which has inspired
men and women of every creed, race, and ancestry to contribute
their highest gifts to the development of our national culture."
|
Seixas Family Circumcision Set
These circumcision implements belonged to members of the
Seixas family, which traced its roots to Portugal and England
before arriving in New York in the first half of the eighteenth
century. The trunk and its implements were fashioned over
time and crafted in different locales, reflecting both the
migrations of the Seixas family and its adherence to one
of Judaism's defining commandments: "every male among you
shall be circumcised." (Genesis17:10).
|
Seixas Family circumcision set
and trunk,
ca. eighteenth century.
Wooden box covered in cow hide with silver implements: silver
trays, clip, pointer, silver flask, spice vessel.
Courtesy of the American Jewish Historical Society,
New York and Newton Centre, Massachusetts (19)
|
Gershom Mendes Seixas (1745-1816).
A Discourse, Delivered
in the Synagogue in New York, on the Ninth of May, 1798:
Observed as a Day of Humiliation, &c. &c., Conformably
to a Recommendation of the President of the United States
of America.
Page 2
New York: William A. Davis & Co., 1798.
Rare Book and Special
Collections Division (20)
|
Reverend Seixas Preaches a Sermon
Gershom Mendes Seixas, the hazzan (leader of the
synagogue service) of the Shearith Israel Congregation, New
York, left the city because of the British occupation during
the Revolutionary War and did not return until after its
liberation. Seixas introduced the practice of delivering
occasional sermons into the American synagogue service, adapting
it from Protestant churches where it was a major component
of the weekly church service.
|
A Hebrew Grammar for Harvard Students
The first Hebrew grammar published in America, its title
page shown here, was issued in 1735 specifically for "the
. . . use of the students at Harvard-College at Cambridge,
in New-England," for whom Hebrew was a required subject.
On converting to Christianity, the grammar's author, Judah
Monis, was appointed to the faculty of Harvard College. One
thousand copies were printed, a large edition for an early
eighteenth-century American publication.
|
Judah Monis (1683-1764).
Dikdook Leshon Gnebreet
[A Grammar of the Hebrew Tongue].
Boston: Jonas Green, 1735.
Hebraic
Section (22)
|
Haym Salomon's [1740-1785] Ketubah
[Jewish marriage certificate], July 6, 1777.
Hand-colored document.
Courtesy of the American Jewish Historical Society,
New York and Newton Centre, Massachusetts (23)
|
Haym Salomon's Ketubah
This ketubah (Jewish marriage contract) records
the 1777 marriage of Haym Salomon and Rachel Franks in New
York. Born in Poland, Haym Salomon arrived in New York in
the mid-1750s. He was a prominent supporter of the American
cause during the Revolutionary War, and, after the war, he
became an important merchant and financier in Philadelphia.
|
A Portrait of Abigail Franks
Colonial Jewry's great letter writer, Abigail Franks, embodied
both a commitment to Jewish tradition and customs, as well
as an independent spirit that sought a Judaism without "superstition" and "idle
ceremonies." But the costs of America's open society were
high. In this letter to her son Naphtali, she wrote of her
shock and despair on learning of her daughter's secret marriage
to a non-Jew: "Good God Wath a Shock it was when they Acquanted
me She had Left the House and Had bin Married Six months
I can hardly hold my Pen whilst I am writting it. . . . My
Spirits Was for Some time Soe Depresst that it was a pain
for me to Speak or See Any one."
|
American School, New York.
Abigail
Franks (1696-1756),
ca.
1740.
Oil on canvas.
Courtesy of the American Jewish Historical Society,
New York and Newton Centre, Massachusetts (24)
|
Abigail Franks (1696-1756) to
Naphtali Franks (1715-1796).
Letter, June 7, 1743 [written from "Flatt bush"].
Courtesy of the American Jewish Historical Society,
New York and Newton Centre, Massachusetts (25)
|
Biblia Hebraica
[Bible. O. T. Hebrew].
Philadelphia: Thomas Dobson, 1814.
Hebraic
Section (26)
|
First Hebrew Bible Printed in America
The first complete Hebrew Bible in America appeared in a
two-volume edition published in Philadelphia in 1814 by Thomas
Dobson, using text prepared by Jonathan (Jonas) Horwitz.
Unlike the Amsterdam edition upon which it is based, this
printing lacks vowel points. It is open to the first page
of Bereshit (Genesis).
|
Portrait of Uriah Phillips Levy
An officer in the United States Navy, Uriah P. Levy fought
in the War of 1812 and rose to the rank of flag officer of
the Mediterranean squadron. He was a vigorous campaigner
against flogging as punishment in the Navy. In 1836, he purchased "Monticello," Thomas
Jefferson's home, and, with his nephew, was instrumental
in preserving it as a national monument.
|
American School.
Uriah Levy (1792-1862),
ca. 1815.
Oil painting.
Courtesy of the American Jewish Historical Society,
New York and Newton Centre, Massachusetts (27)
|
Ketubah (marriage
certificate), 1819.
Ink, pencil, and watercolor on parchment.
Courtesy of the HUC Skirball Cultural Center Museum Collection,
Los Angeles.
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. William M. Daniel in honor of the seventy-fifth
Birthday of Mr. Bernard Gordon (28)
|
An Illuminated American Ketubah
One of the earliest known examples of an American illuminated
marriage contract, this ketubah celebrates the wedding
of Meir Meyerstone and Rebekah De Meza on November 7, 1819.
The two witnesses are well known in the annals of American
Jewish history. Ephraim Hart (1747-1825) was a wealthy stockbroker
who came to New York from Bavaria shortly before the Revolution.
He served at Congregation Shearith Israel in New York in
various capacities, including president. The second witness,
Moses Levi Maduro Peixotto (1767-1828), a member of a distinguished
Sephardi family, was a merchant who led the synagogue service
of Shearith Israel from 1816-1828.
|
Charleston's Beth Elohim Synagogue
Painter and printmaker John Rubens Smith drew this pencil
sketch of the first Beth Elohim synagogue building in Charleston,
South Carolina, which was consecrated in 1794. The exterior
of the synagogue, which resembled a church in the Georgian
style, reflected the community's efforts to blend into the
surrounding environment. The building burned to the ground
in 1838.
|
John Rubens Smith (1770-1840).
Jews Synagogue in Charleston [Beth
Elohim], ca. 1812.
Pencil drawing.
Prints and Photographs
Division (29)
|
Solomon Nunes Carvalho (1815-1894).
Kahal Kadosh: Interior of Beth
Elohim Synagogue, Charleston, South Carolina, ca. 1838.
Oil on canvas.
Courtesy of Kahal Kadosh Beth Elohim Synagogue, Charleston,
South Carolina, the birthplace of Reform Judaism in America
(30)
|
Interior of Beth Elohim Synagogue
Solomon Carvalho's painting from memory of the interior
of the Beth Elohim Synagogue shows an interior that conforms
to the Sephardic tradition, with men's seating on the ground
floor facing the reader's desk in the center and accommodations
for women located in the upstairs gallery. American Reform
Judaism traces its origins to the Beth Elohim congregation,
when a group of synagogue members withdrew from the synagogue
in 1825 and established the Reformed Society of Israelites,
which survived for about thirteen years.
|
Bird's Eye View of Charleston
This 1872 map of Charleston reflects a nineteenth-century
trend in American mapmaking that featured "bird's-eye" views
prepared for towns and cities across the nation. The map
shows the location of Charleston's "Sinagogue" (no. 45)
and the Hebrew Orphan Asylum (no. 85), which was
incorporated in 1802 as the first American Jewish orphan
care agency.
|
C. N. Drie.
Bird's Eye View of the City
of Charleston,
South Carolina, 1872.
Enlarged version
Color lithograph map.
Geography and Map
Division (31)
|
Penina Moise (1797-1880).
Fancy's Sketch Book.
Charleston, South Carolina: J.S. Burges, 1833.
Rare Book and Special
Collections Division (32)
|
First Published Work by an American Jewish Woman
Born in Charleston, South Carolina, Penina Moise became
a widely published author and poet. A deeply religious woman,
she composed hymns for use in prayer service as well as this
book of poetry, which includes poems on biblical themes and
on contemporary Jewish life. Few copies survive of Moise's
collection of verse entitled Fancy's Sketch Book,
which was the first book by a Jewish woman in the United
States.
|
A Portion of the People
Isaac Harby of Charleston protested the removal of Mordecai
Manuel Noah from his post as consul to Tunis because he was
a Jew, arguing in a letter to Secretary of State James Monroe,
Harby writes: "It is upon the principle, not of toleration .
. . but upon the principle of equal inalienable, constitutional
Rights, that we see Jews appointed to offices, that
we see them elected in our State Representation, & that,
in proportion as their talents and their influence can bear
them through, we see their mingling in the honours of their
country. They are by no means to be considered a Religious
sect, tolerated by the government; they constituted
a portion of the people."
|
Isaac Harby (1788-1828) to
James Monroe (1758-1831).
Manuscript letter, May 13, 1816.
Page 2 - Page
3 - Page 4
Courtesy of the National Archives and Records
Administration, Washington, D.C. (33)
|
Thomas Jefferson to Mordecai
Manuel Noah,
May 28, 1818.
Thomas Jefferson Papers.
Manuscript Division (34)
|
". . . For Altho' We Are Free by the Law, We Are Not
So in Practice"
Mordecai Manuel Noah was the first Jew born in the United
States to reach national prominence. In his letter to Noah
dated May 28, 1818, former President Thomas Jefferson sheds
light on the nature of democracy, the frailty of human character,
the power of the human spirit, and his own faith in humankind.
Jefferson cautions, however, that: "More remains to
be done, for altho’ we are free by the law, we are
not so in practice."
|
Portrait of Mordecai Manuel Noah
This portrait of Mordecai Manuel Noah appears as the frontispiece
of a work describing his brief but eventful tenure as Consul
to the Kingdom of Tunis. Noah was removed from this position
allegedly because, in the words of Secretary of State James
Monroe, his religion was "an obstacle to the exercise of
[his] Consular function." The firing caused outrage among
Jews and non-Jews alike.
|
Mordecai M. Noah.
Travels in England, France,
Spain, and the Barbary
States, in the Years 1813-14 and 15.
New York: Kirk and Mercein, 1819.
Rare Book and Special
Collections Division (35)
|
Mordecai M. Noah.
Discourse on the Restoration
of the Jews, Delivered at the Tabernacle, October 28 and
December 2, 1844.
Page 2
New York: Harpers & Brothers, 1845.
Rare Book and Special
Collections Division (37)
|
An Early American Zionist Treatise
In this work, Mordecai Manuel Noah proclaimed his faith
that the Jews would return and rebuild their ancient homeland.
Noah called on America to take the lead in this endeavor.
|
Noah Attacked on the Steps
This curious broadside depicts Noah being attacked by Elijah
J. Roberts, a former business associate, on the steps of
a theater. A placard on the theater reads: "THE JEW, 1 Act
of the HYPOCRITE, End with the farce of THE LIAR"--which
seems more critical of Noah than of his attacker.
|
" Mordecai
M. Noah, of no. 57, Franklin-Street . . . ."
Woodcut with letter-press broadside, June 20, 1828.
Rare Book and Special
Collections Division (38)
|
|