Tuesday, December 15, 2015

Hebrew Yiddish Miscellany

Another miscellany. The kinds of things that interest me, please me and keep me interested in the trade as I stumble through my third decade in the book trade.

Aaron, of Pesaro. [Minkowsky, Aaron?]. Zeh Sefer Toledet Aharon" Asher Sipur mi-yeme hayav maym holado ad moto ve-nidfas al"yad benav ve-hotanu Yakh" ve-hovah le-bet ha-dafus den Iten Yuni 1903. Shanat 763. Cincinnati, Ohio, Press of Samuels Printing Co., 1903. Octavo, paper covers, 20 pp. Softbound. Very Good. Text is in Hebrew. #518 in Yosef Goldman's Hebrew Printing in America V. 1, P. 458. A short account of the author's take in America which he took to task in a humorous but highly educated way. (78151)     $35.00 

Effron, Louis, edited by. Der Bezim: Humoristisher Zshurnal mit Ernste Khonos/ The Bezim, a Journal for Humor and Satire, Vol. 1, No. 1, September, 1945. Philadelphia, PA., Louis Effron, 1945. Duodecimo, stapled paper covers, 20 pp., political cartoons by Zagat. Softbound. Very Good. Text is in Yiddish. OCLC Number: 33347842. Political humor with strong comic images. Uncommon. (78449)      $30.00

Freud, Sigmund. Ha-Psikhologyah shel ha-hamon veha-analizah shel ha-ani. Jerusalem, Hed Ha-Hinukh, 1927/8. First Hebrew Language Edition. Small octavo, paper covers, 86 pp. Softbound. Very Good. Translated from the German into Hebrew by Y. Dvosis. Sifriyat "Hed Ha-Hinukh," Sefer Rishon.Appears to be a translation of Massenpsychologie und Ich-Analyse: Die Zukunft einer Illusion, first published in German in Leipzig in 1921. One of the earliest translations of Freud into Hebrew. (78311)      $75.00

Glicenstein, Simon.  Admor Yoman rishme bikure mi-Lyubavitsh be-Erets Yisra'el. Jerusalem, Menahem-Av, 789 [1929]. Duodecimo, stapled paper covers, 24 pp. Softbound. Very Good. Text is in Hebrew. A short biographical work about the Sixth Lubavitsh Rebbe Yosef Yitshak Schneerson. Glicenstein wrote about Rabbinical history in a way that must have been acceptable to Orthodox community. (78244)      $50.00

Hakohen, Shoshan. Pil'e ha-tsadikim: sipurim u-ma'asiyot meha-tsadikim u-kedoshe elyon  ... Djerba, Tunisia, Ya'akov Hadad, 1935. Duodecimo, black cloth spine, marbled paper covers, 36 pp., yellowed paper. Softbound. Very Good. Text is in Hebrew. (78270) A book of Sephardi legends. One of Hakohen's works published in his lifetime.     $50.00

Komplas de Purim: por rekontar el nes de Purim ... Vienna, H.S.L. Vortman, 1891/2. Octavo, sewn paper covers, 23 pp. Softbound. Good. Text is in Ladino (78330) First published in 1851/2. A Ladino Purim anthology of humorous songs.    $150.00

Rapoport, Abraham. Neki kapayim u-var mitsvah: derush she-darash ... Avraham Kats Rapaport Shrentsil be-yom she-na'aseh bar mitsvah. Frankfurt am Main, Bet ha-defus "Defus", 1925. Small octavo, paper covers, 40 pp. with a facsimile of the original title page. Softbound. Very Good. Text is in Hebrew. Reprints the original title-page from the Krakow edition of 1598. A facsimile reprint of an early collection of Bar Mitsvah drashes, (78333)     $45.00
 

Shirim la-milu'im: yom hukam al kise ha-rabanut be-kehilah kedoshah Levorden ... Avraham ben.. Shabtai Levisson .../Feestzangen bij de installatie van den Weleerw. heer A.S. Levisson als Opperrabbijn van het Synagogaal Ressort Friesland. Amsterdam, Typ. Van Crefeld & Co., 1924. Octavo, stapled paper covers, 8  pp. Softbound. Very Good. Text is in Hebrew and Dutch. A special prayer service on the installation of Avraham Shabatai Levisson as rabbi at the Friesland synagogue. (78260)      $35.00

Todah ve-kol zimrah: be-vate kenesiyot bi-medinat Britanya li-melot 25 shanah le-memshelet ha-melekh 'Gorg' ... al kise malkhuto, yom 1. 9 Iyar 5695/ Prayer and thanksgiving : for the semi-jubilee of His Majesty's accession to the throne, Sunday 12th May 5695-1935. London, Office of the Chief Rabbi, 1935. Octavo, stapled paper covers with mild wear, 12 pp. Softbound. Very Good-. Text is in Hebrew and English on facing pages. (78258)      $80.00

Yaari, Abraham. Ha-Defus ha-Ivri bi-Shklov. Jerusalem, 1946. Octavo, stapled paper covers, 50 pp.  Softbound. Very Good. Text is in Hebrew. Shklov was a small town but at its height between 1780 and 1850 it was a center for Jewish printing in Eastern Europe and for the Lubavitch movement. (78326)      $30.00

Yidisher almanakh Pariz, 1931/ Almanach Juif 1931, Paris. Paris, Farlag der nayer dor, 1931. Octavo, paper covers with rough wear to the spine, 120, 168 pp., calendar, b/w photos. Softbound. Good-. Text is in Yiddish and French. An important resource on the Jews of France in the interwar years. An uncommon title. (77193)     $75.00

Zekher Tsadik Livrakhah: Memorial Exercises in Memory of Solomon Schechter Kaf"Het Tevet 676, Aeolina Hall, New York. New York, 1916. Octavo, string-bound paper covers mildly soiled and lightly creased 19 pp., Hebrew and English text on facing pages. Softbound. Good. Text is in Hebrew and English. Contents are "Psalm XVI," "Shokene Botte Homer, A Dirge," Solomon ibn Gabirol, Introductory address by Jacob H. Schiff, Addresses by Louis Marshall, Louis Ginzberg, Charles Isaiah Hoffman, Herman Lissauer, "Psalm XLIX," "Hazkarah," concluding with Alenu and Karddish. The Psalms and prayers were chanted by all and led by Reverend S. Jacobson. Uncommon. (78225)      $50.00

Hebrew Children's Books Again

A selection of readers for young readers, published in the first half of the century in Mandate Palestine, Israel, Germany and Poland. With one additional item about Jewish education in Lithuania and the American philanthropy that supported it.

Berdichevsky, Micah Joseph. Be-derekh rehokah: sipurim ve-agadot. Tel Aviv, Kupat ha-sefer, Undated [1920 or 1922]. Short octavo, stapled paper covers, 20 pp., small incidental drawings. Softbound. Very Good. Text is in Hebrew. Rare. A collection of short stories and tales adapted for younger readers. (78325)      $75.00

Berkovitz, Y.D. Shevilim: pirke sifrut le-Mikra ve-limud. G. Y. D. Berkovitz. Berlin, Agudat bate-sefer Ivrim, 1920. Octavo, stapled paper covers, 16 pp., yellowed paper. Softbound. Good. Text is in Hebrew. a school reader. (74208)     $20.00

Chekhov, Anton Pavlovich. Ne'arim: sipur. New York, Hotsa'at Sofrim, 1922. Small octaco, stapled paper covers, 16 pp., minor wear to the rear cover, front cover design by Saul Raskin. Softbound. Good. Text is translated into Hebrew from the original Russian. Mikra'ot Ketanot Hoveret Vav. Another school reader. (78245)     $15.00

De Amicis, Edmondo. Min ha-Apeninim ve-ad ha-Andim. Frankfurt am Main, Hotsaat Omanut, c. 1923. 16mo, soiled paper covered boards with black lettering and illustration, small chip at the head of the spine, 63 pp., a few illustrations. Hardbound. Good. Translated into Hebrew from the Italian by A. Almoni. A short tale by De Amicis adapted for the younger reader. Omanut produced art books and this volume, like their others, shows a more artistic aesthetic than most Hebrew publishers work. De Amicis wrote in the late nineteenth century in the vibrant atmosphere of a newly unified Italy. His works embodied both the nationalism of the time and a socialist bent that emerged in the middle years of his writing career. (77615)     $35.00

Frishman, David. Shevilim: pirke sifrut le-Mikra ve-limud. B. David Frishman. Berlin, Agudat bate-sefer Ivrim, 1920. Octavo, stapled paper covers, 16 pp., yellowed paper. Softbound. Good. Text is in Hebrew. (74207)     $20.00Melumad, N. Purim. Hagim: Gimel. Tel Aviv, A.Y. Shtivel, no date (1960s?). Octavo, stapled paper covers, b/w drawings. Softbound. Good. Text is in Hebrew. (78140) Another school text.    $15.00

Gibel, Ya'akov. Sifriyah le-bar be rav. Five fascicles: Hoveret Rishonah: Be-Lel Lag Ba-Omer, Gibel. Hoveret Shniyah: Tefilat Ha-Rav. Hoveret Shelishit: Temunat Matan Torah, by L. Fingold. Hoveret Revi'it: Shene Halomot, by L. Fingold. Hoveret Hamishit: Huledet Ha-Ba'al-Shem-Tov. Five of eight pieces. New York, Hotsa'at Ben-Or, 1920s?. 16mos, stapled paper covers, 8 + 8 + 8 + 8 + 8 pp., b/w drawings. Softbound. Very Good. Text is in Hebrew, (77618) a group of very small little booklets meant for children's hands based on holiday and Hasidic themes.    $35.00

Melumad, N. Purim. Hagim: Gimel. Tel Aviv, A.Y. Shtivel, no date (1960s?). Octavo, stapled paper covers, b/w drawings. Softbound. Good. Text is in Hebrew. (78140) With reproductions of older dull illustrations as well as contemporary stylish line drawings by an uncredited artist. Part of a series by the author on the Jewish holidays.    $15.00


Mendele Mokher Seforim. Shevilim: pirke sifrut le-Mikra ve-limud. Vav-Zayin. Mendele Mokher Seforim. Berlin, Agudat bate-sefer Ivrim, 1920. Octavo, stapled paper covers, 32 pp., yellowed paper. Softbound. Good. Text is in Hebrew. (74209) Another school text.    $25.00

Pe'ulot Keren Edu'ard M. Tsheis li-temikhat talmidim u-studentim be-Lita be-meshekh hamesh shenot ha-limudim 1928/29-1932/33/ Report of the Activities of the Edward M. Chase Student Aid Foundation in Lithuania. School Years 1928/29 - 1932/33. Kaunas/ Kovno, Edward M. Chase Student Aid Foundation in Lithuania, [1933]. Duodecimo, paper covers, 48, 32 pp., b/w frontispiece, tables. Softbound. Very Good. Text is in Hebrew and English from opposite ends of the volume. (78292) Chase was a New Yorker actively interested in aiding the youth of Kovno, his home town. He put his own money into the project and solicited additional donations with modest success. I can't say what became of the fund or the school that it supported.    $45.00

Sholem Aleichem. Ma'ot shel Hanukah: mishak be-shalosh temunot: Mishak be-Shalosh Temunot.  Shalom-Alekhem li-vene ha-ne'urim. Tel Aviv, Dvir, 1928. Octavo, stapled paper covers with mild dog-earing at the open corners, 20 pp. Softbound. Good. Translated into Hebrew and adapted for schools by Y.D. Berkowitz. (78290) A short play adapted from the Yiddish by Sholem Aleichem's son-in-law.    $35.00

Steinberg, Judah. Sihot yeladim: Kovets sihot mekoriyot li-yeladim. Warsaw, Hotsa'at Tushiyah, no date. Octavo, paper covers, 116 pp. Softbound. Very Good. Text is in Hebrew. With vocabulary notes in Russian. (78251)     $35.00

Thursday, November 12, 2015

Mandate Palestine Miscellany

A few traces of life in Mandate Palestine. Songs of innocence and experience. All available at the time of posting at the Hollander Books website.

Ben-Avi, Ithamar. Ha-Yamah! Osef ma'amarav ha-yamiyim ha-rishonim. Tel Aviv, Hotsa'at "Zevulun", 1936. Small octavo, paper covers, frontispiece photo, 85 pp. Softbound. Very Good. Text is in Hebrew. An brief account of the Tel Aviv Beach Customs Section which was greeting people making Aliyah by any means necessary. (78236)     $50.00

Hasidim alu el ha-arets: (le-hityashvut Haside Yablonah ve-Kuzenits be-Emek Yizre'el). Jerusalem, Ha-Lishkah ha-rashit shek ha-keren ha-kayemet le-Yisra'el, 1926. Octavo, stapled paper covers, 13 pp., b/w photos. Softbound. Good. Text is in Hebrew. Promotion for a Hasidic agricultural settlement (of short duration). Manual labor is honorable. (78329)     $45.00

G-r, Y., compiled and edited by. Yizkor: sefer-zikaron li-kedoshe shenat 698, te'ur hayehem u-mesibot motam. Tel Aviv, Hotsa'at "Tel-Aviv", 1939. Octavo, soiled and rumpled paper covers, 32 pp., b/w photos. Softbound. Fair. Text is in Hebrew. The first of two similar items. These items were apparently published with some regularity. They remember with photos and brief biographies those who passed away active in the Zionist struggle in Mandate Palestine (78328)     $25.00

Shahin, Zahid. Sodot she-od terem nodu. Tel Aviv, Defus ko'operativi "ha-Po'el ha-tsair", 1929/30. 16mo, mildly soiled stapled paper covers, 32 pp. Softbound. Good. Translated from the Arabic by Salim Abughosh. An account of the Arab Riots of 1929 written by a local Palestinian Arab in Arabic and translated into Hebrew. Po'el Ha-Tsair is on the left, but the motivation for publishing this account is not clear. Certainly a less frequently heard side of the story.(78247)     $50.00

Shalmoni, Hayim. Yizkor: temunot ve-toldot "8 kedoshe Nisan 696" Tel Aviv, C. 1918. Royal octavo, soiled stapled paper covers, 8 pp., b/w photos. Softbound. Fair. Text is in Hebrew. (78198)     $25.00

Sheinfeld, Y., Plan arranged by Arch. Sheinfeld. Tel Aviv u-sevivoteha = Tel-Aviv and surroundings Scale 1: 5000. Tel Aviv, Irit Tel-Aviv, 1924. Octavo, stapled paper, 24 pp., b/w photos, large fold-out map at the rear. Softbound. Very Good. Text is in Hebrew, German and English. (78320)  A brief promotional booklet for the risning new city of Tel Aviv complete with a large fold-out map/plan by the original architect of that plan Yisrael Sheinfeld.   $75.00

Friday, October 30, 2015

Pamphlets on Israeli Art

A few small but uncommon items on Israeli Art and Israeli Art Museums. All are uncommon but some are rare. All can be ordered through the hollanderbooks.com website as of the day of posting.

Ha-Tanakh shel Abel Pan. Jerusalem, Hevrat E.Y. le-hotsaot omanutiyot, 1923. Octavo, stapled paper covers, 16 pp., portrait of Pann. Softbound. Very Good. Text is in Hebrew. Appears to be a prospectus for Pann's Tanakh. The project was never completed though he did produce some of the work intended to be included in it. Pann and Ze'ev Raban were Boris Schatz's primary associates in the Bezalel enterprise. (78064)     Sold

Muze'on Tel-'Aviv 694/ Museum Tel-Aviv 1934. Tel Aviv, Tel Aviv Museum, 1934. Octavo, stapled paper covers, 24 pp., b/w plates, 2 pages of plans for the museum. Softbound. Very Good. Text is in Hebrew, English, French and German. Uncommon - only three library holding internationally. The Museum opened in 1932 in Meir Dizengoff's house but the plans that appear in this pamphlet seem to be for a later building. (78318)     $50.00

Narkiss, M. Rekhishot nivharot 1946-1956: shenat ha-yovel le-Betsal'el: Fevruar-Mars 1957/Selected acquisitions 1946-1956: Jubilee year of Bezalel, February - March 1957. Jerusalem, The Israel National Musuem, 1957. Octavo, stapled paper covers, ii, 12, xii, 16, ii pp., b/w plates. Softbound. Very Good. Text is in Hebrew and English. The Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design grew out of the original Bezalel school though Shatz's original vision for the school failed.The Academy has largely relocated to Hebrew University's Har Ha-Tsofim campus with the exceptional of the Architecture school which remains in the beautiful original facility in central Jerusalem. (78303)     $30.00

Shavit, Ami. Ami Shavit: meha-obyekt leha-defes/ Ami Shavit, from the object to the print: Israel Museum, Jerusalem, July, -August, 1972. Jerusalem, Israel Museum, 1972. Squarish octavo, stapled paper covers, 16 pp., with five sheets of transparency showing different layers to combine into a single image. Softbound. Very Good. Text is in English and Hebrew. (78159)      $10.00

Ta'arukhat matsevot bet ha-kevarot ha-Yehudi be-Shidlovtsah (Polin): he'etekim grafiyim ma'ase yede Yotsk Antoni Zelinski ve-Lutsinah Krakovskah: Kislev-Shevat 724, Detsember 1963-Febru'ar 1964/ Exhibition of tombstones of the Jewish cemetery in Szydlowiec (Poland). Graphic Prints by Jacek Antoni Zielinski and Lucyna Krakowska. Kislev - Shevat 5724, December 1963 - February 1964. Tel Aviv, Museum Haaretz, Museum of Ethnography and Folklore, Ginza Section for Jewish Folk Art, 1963. 16mo, stapled paper covers, 32 pp., b/w photos and drawings. Softbound. Very Good. Text is in Hebrew with an introduction at the rear in Polish. Szydlowiec's Jewish population reached a noticeable level by 1700 and steadily increased into the 20th Century. The Jewish cemetery there was consecrated in 1788 on land granted to the Jewish community by the local count.  (77311)     $25.00

Friday, October 23, 2015

A Hebrew Pamphlet Miscellany

Another collection of Hebrew language pamphlets, some quite uncommon.  Imprints are from Germany, Mandate Palestine, China, and Prague. They tell rich stories from forgotten corners of modern Jewish history.  I am working through a fairly large group of pamphlets in Hebrew and journals in Yiddish which should keep me busy for some time. There are far more of them than I could ever present here, but keep an eye open for more selections.

Din ve-heshbon shel ha-gimnasyah ha-Ivrit be-Yafo li-shenat 669. Jaffa, Mo'etset poale Yafo, 1909. Octavo, paper covers with wear to the spine, 104 pp. Softbound. Good. Text is in Hebrew. (77343) A report on the status of the educational program of the school with details of budgeting, curriculum and the make-up of the student body.     $45.00

Dov Shefer: Temurt Hoveret zo Kadosh Le-Hakmat Matsevet ad Le-Zekher Dov Shefer. Neti'at 500 Etsim a"sh al Admat Ha-Keren Ha-Kayemet Le-Yisrael. Kaunas, Hotsa'at Histadrut "Shomriyah" Be-Lita, Yanvar, 1939. 16mo, paper covers, 80 pp., b/w photos. Softbound. Good. Text is in Hebrew. A memorial book for a Lithuanian oleh who died young. A common enough type of item, but in this particular case quite uncommon. Only one copy is recorded and it is unclear whether it is a microfilmed copy of an actual book. (77307)      $50.00
Gottfried, Markus [Gotfrid, Mordekhai]. Shir Ha-Sadeh o Em ve-Yeled/ Hasadeh ou EM wajeled: Ein Patriotisches Lied (Vaterlandsliebe, Hoffnung und Mut der Österreicher u. der Reichsdeutschen). Prague, Selbsverlag - Druck von Richard Brandeis, 1915. 16mo, soiled stapled paper covers, 16 pp. Softbound. Good. Text is in Hebrew. A poem menat to express in Hebrew the patriotic fervor of the German and Austrian Jews. (77617)      $45.00

Gutman, Raphael. Eden: Sefer Rishon. Im Tsi'urim Rabim Targilim Li-Melekhet-Yad. Kassel, Tsentral Komitet fun di befrayte Yidn in der Amerikaner zone, 1947. Small octavo, paper covers, illustrated title-page, 71 pp., b/w drawings, special illustrated title page showing various scenes from the Holocaust. Softbound. Very Good. Text is in Hebrew. Reprints the 1927 New York edition. A children's primer to teach Hebrew reading and Hebrew penmanship. "This edition of 'Eden' has been published for use in the Jewish DP Camps in the American Occupied Zone of Germany under the Supervision of Mr. Elieser Hershauge, Mr. Morris Fishman, American Joint Distribution Committee Field Representative and Abraham J. Klausner, Chaplain, U.S.A., Printing is in compliance with the governing regulations of the information control division of the U.S. Military Government. Publication has been made possible by a generous grant from the Euclid Avenue Temple, Cleveland, Ohio." (77383)      Sold

Hertsman, Elhanan Yosef. Gadlut ha-adam. Helek Alef. Ma'amar R. Ya'akov Emden z"l u-Vi'urim be-inyanen gadlut ha-Adam api"d ha-musar. Shanghai, 1945. Octavo, stapled paper covers, 34 pp., minor chipping at the top open corner, yellowed paper. Softbound. Good. Text is in Hebrew. A short work on ethics. An uncommon imprint from wartime Shanghai. (78116)      $75.00

Isur rabotenu ha-kedoshim al hishtatfut ba-behirah. [Jerusalem], 1961. Small octavo, stapled paper covers, 15 pp. Softbound. Very Good. Text is in Hebrew. Appears to be a piece of ultra-Orthodox anti-secularist opposition to the secular state of Israel as expressed through opposition to participation in elections. Uncommon. (77329)      $25.00

Judah Loew ben Bezalel. Sefer Zekher tsadik: derushim nifla'im atikim mi-kivshono shel olam ... yots'im mi-pi rabenu ha-gadol ... Yehuda Lovi ... ha-noda ba-shem kodsho Maharal mi-Prag: asher darash be-yom 2, 17 Iyar 357 ba-yom petirat ha-ga'on mo. h. Akiva Gintsburg mi-Frankfurt ... Warsaw, Bi-defus Y. Goldman, 1871. 16mo, disbound paper covers, 16 pp. Softbound. Fair. Text is in Hebrew. (78072)     SOLD

[Klausner, Abraham J.]. Alef-bet: defus-ketav-misparim. Kassel, Germany, Tsentral Komitet fun di befrayte Yidn in der Amerikaner zone, 1947. 16mo, paper covers, 6 "pages" of perforated sheets of card stock with Hebrew consonants and vowels. Softbound. Very Good. Text is in Hebrew. "Notes on Printing. This Volume is the fifth in a series of works prepared for use in the Jewish Displaced Persons' Camps in the American Occupied Zone of Germany by the Regional Committee of the Central Committee of Liberated Jews in Germany in Cooperation with the Office of Abraham J. Klausner, Chaplain, USA. This volume was originally prepared and printed by B. Barlevy, Publisher of Children's Books in Tel Aviv, Palestine. Publication is made possible by a publication fund grant made by Temple Israel, Minneapolis, Minnesota." (77382)      Sold

Rivkind, Isaac. Ha-Netsiv ve-yihuso le-Hibat Tsiyon: perek mi-toldot hayav u-fe'ulotav. Lodz, Tse'ire Mizrahi, 1918/9. Duodecimo, stapled paper covers with a small chip lacking a small chip, 23 pp., yellowed paper. Softbound. Good. Text is in Hebrew. (78083) The Netsiv, Naphtali Ẓevi Judah Berlin, was the last Rosh Yeshiva of the Volozhin Yeshiva.    Sold

[Schapiro, Eva]. Kovets tsiyurim: em kol hai. Warsaw, Defus Y. Edelshtain, 1909. Duodecimo, soiled and water-stained paper covers, 63 pp. Softbound. Good. Text is in Hebrew. (77324)      $50.00

Shne'urson, Pinta. Ha-Tse'akah ha-olamit al Treblinka: lamah ve-ekh. Tel Aviv, Hotsaat "El-Damei", c. 1943/4. Duodecimo, stapled paper covers, 8 pp. Softbound. Very Good. Text is in Hebrew. Rare. (77608)  A small pamphlet about the shame of the crimes committed at Treblinka. A forgotten voice. This is the only item in OCLC by this author who may be a relative of the Habad Schneersons   $60.00

Thursday, October 22, 2015

The Jews of India - their stories on paper



The Jews of India are comprised of a number of small communities of quite distinctive character. There are older settlements and there are the later arrivals from the Persian community. Below are a few works dealing with these distinctive communities. The first item is a notable book and quite uncommon. All of these are available via the Hollander Books website at the moment unless marked as sold.

Erkulkar, D. S., editor. The Israelite. Isarayala. Vol. 1, January 1917 - Tebeth 5677, No. 1. through Vol. 1, December 1917- Kislev 5678, No. 12. Bombay, India, R.J. Ezekiel, 1917. Octavo, light blue cloth with gold lettering, tear to the cloth at the head of the spine, minor worming to the boards, approximately 240 pp. with the original wrappers bound in., advertisements, yellowed paper with water-staining to the first page of the first issue, some mild worming internally. Hardbound. Good. Text is in Hebrew and Maranthi. This is the first year of eleven. The journal ceased publication mid-year on 1917. The National Library in Israel and the Klau Library at Hebrew Union College hold complete runs. A few institutions have volumes 6-8 which seem to be slightly more common or may simply be a copy cataloging phenomenon that masks the actual holdings of those institutions. The Hebrew Union College set is not listed via OCLC. I know it from direct examination.
English language articles in No. 1 are "Ourselves," the Editor, "Economics of a Bombay Bene-Israel Life," the Editor, "The Bene-Israel," K.B. Jacob B. Israel, "The Future of Our Community," A.S. Erkulkar, "The Community's Appreciation, Mr. Samson. English language articles in No. 2 are "The Needs of our Community," the Editor, "The Bene-Israel," K.B. Jacob B. Israel, "The Study of Hebrew among the Bene-Israel," H.S. Rubens, "Our Yellow Cover," R.J. Ezekiel, "Three Sisters," X, "Young men's Hebrew Association Poona," our correspondent. English language articles in No 3. are "The Needs of our Community," the Editor, "The Law of Inheritance and Succession among the Bene-Israels," I.J. Samson, "People Will Talk," a Lady Friend. English language articles in No. 4 are "The Needs of our Community," the Editor, "The Bene-Israel," D.J. Samson, "A Jewish Library," B.D. Shahapurker. English language articles in No. 5 are "The Needs of our Community," the Editor, "The Bene-Israel," D.J. Samson. English language articles in No 6. are "The Needs of our Community," the Editor, "The Bene-Israel," D.J. Samson. English language articles in No. 7 are "Lest We Forget," the Editor, "Marriage and Divorce among The Bene-Israel," D.J. Samson, "Poona New Synagogue Fund." English Language articles in No. 8 are "The Torah - Our Greatest Benefactor," W.M. Haffkine, "Marriage and Divorce among The Bene-Israel," D.J. Samson. English language articles in No. 9 are "Thoughts on Yom Kippur," the Editor, "A Page from the Past," S.D.A. Rohekar, "The Free Ophthalmic Hospital," "An Appeal to the Public." English language articles in No 10 are "What is a Conference," the Editor, "The Phrase 'an Eye for an Eye' and the Question of Reprisals," Herbert Loewe, "Queer Beliefs of the Arab Jews," I.A. Isaacs, "Stray Thoughts on Jewish Religion," G. Lewis, "The Israelite League." English language articles in No. 12 are "Communal Conference Contre-Temps," the Editor, "The Phrase 'an Eye for an Eye' and the Question of Reprisals," Herbert Loewe, "Rules and Regulations for the Conference.
Each issue includes News & Notes, Correspondence and some contain gleanings. Each issue has a section in Maranthi equal in size to the section in English which sadly your cataloger cannot read or explicate. One more item for the linguistic bucket-list. (78221)
Indian Jewish imprints are hard to come by. Printing arrived in Goa in the 16th Century but the number of imprinted produced by the various Indian Jewish communities is not large. The Israelite comes from a period of some comfort and success for the Bene-Israel community.    Sold



Ahva: Registered under the Bombay Public Trusts Act, 1950. (Regd. No D 247). Report and Statement of Accounts for the Years 1975 to 1979. Bombay, India, Ahva, c/o Mr. Samuel Hannock, 1979. Octavo, stapled paper covers, 40 pp. Softbound. Very Good.  (40426)   $30.00

Astren, Fred. The Printed Book in India: Imprints of the Blumenthal Rare Book and Manuscript Library. Berkeley, CA, Judah L. Magnes Museum, 1992. First Edition. Small octavo, stapled paper covers, 46 pp., b/w illustrations, bibliography, index. Softbound. Very Good. A catalog of 141 items in the collection with short physical descriptions and with illustrations of some title pages and plates from the items. (29386)     $14.95

Congregation BINA: Rosh Hashana Special Issue. New York, September 29, 1981. New York, Congregation BINA, 1981. Royal octavo, paper covers creased across the horizontal center, 8 pp. Softbound. Good. A Bene Israel [Indian Jewish] New York synagogue community bulletin. (68576)   $10.00

Fernandes, Edna. The Last Jews of Kerala: The 2, 000 Year History of India's Forgotten Jewish Community. New York, Skyhourse Publishing, 2008. First Edition. ISBN: 978-1-60239-267-0. Octavo in dust jacket, xxii, 228 pp., b/w photos, references. The Kerala community traces its roots to the time of the destruction of the second temple but it has faded now to just a few dozen. It was comprised of the White Jews of Mattancherry and the Black Jews of Ernakulam. Hardbound. Very Good.  (66842)     $3.95

Isenberg, Shirley Berry. India's Bene Israel: A Comprehensive Inquiry and Sourcebook. Berkeley, California, Judah L. Magnes Museum, 1988. First Edition. Octavo in dust jacket, xxxii, 443 pp., b/w photos, three fold-out maps, statistical tables, glossary and historical notes for Indian Terms used in the book, glossary and notes for Jewish terms used in this book, bibliography, index. Hardbound. Very Good. A thorough scholarly study of the largest of India's three major Jewish communities. What began for the author as an anthropological work expanded to include a clear exposition of the Indian environment and of the history of the community. The Bene Israel lived largely in the area of Bombay and in the adjacent Kolaba district along the western coast of India. A thriving community that peaked in the 1940s, the Bene Israel are now a very small remnant.  (29383)     $30.00

Judah, Aaron. Clown on Fire. New York, The Dial Press, 1967. First Edition. Small octavo in dust jacket, xx, 211 pp. Hardbound. Very Good.  (22613)  A young adult novel with a Lithuanian-Iranian heritage boy growing up in India. The story features all sorts of troublesome young people's behavior in the company of Jews, Muslims and Hindus. The book won The Dial Press Fellowship Award for fiction for 1967.    $9.00

Judah, Sophie. Dropped from Heaven: Stories. New York, Schocken Books, 2007. First Edition. ISBN: 978-0-8052-4248-5. Octavo in dust jacket, x, 245 pp. Hardbound. Very Good.  (66144)  Nineteen interconnected stories set in the mythical village of Jwalanager among the Bene Israel.    $8.00

Sargon, Joe I., editor. The Jewish Tribune: India's Leading Jewish Paper. Vol. I-No. 4m June 1st 1933.-Sivan 5693. Shabuoth Number. Bombay, India, 1933. Small quarto, stapled paper covers, 38 pp., ads. Softbound. Good.  (39065)      $25.00

Sargon, Joe I., editor. The Jewish Tribune: India's Leading Jewish Paper. Vol. I-No. 6, August 1st 1933.-AB 5693. Bombay, India, 1933. Small quarto, stapled paper covers, 34 pp., ads. Softbound. Good.  (39066)     $25.00

Silliman, Jael. Jewish Portraits, Indian Frames: Women's Narratives from a Diaspora of Hope. Hanover, New Hampshire, Brandeis University Press, published by University Press of New England, 2001. ISBN: 1-58465-305-1. Octavo, paper covers, x, 198 pp., b/w photos, references, index. Softbound. Very Good.
Jewish Portraits, Indian Frames offers a personal and social history of the author's foremothers -- Baghdadi Jews who lived most of their lives in the Jewish community in Calcutta. Jael Silliman begins with a portrait of Farha, her maternal great-greandmother, who dwelled almost entirely within the Baghdadi Jewish community no matter where she and her husband traveled on business (Calcutta, Rangoon, Singapore). Next is her maternal grandmother, Miriam (Mary), who was much more Anglicized than Farha and deeply influenced by British colonial practices. The third portrait, of Silliman's mother, Flower, reveals a woman in a double transition: her own and India's. Flower grew up in colonial India, witnessed India's struggle for independence, and lived her middle years in an independent India. The final sketch is of Silliman herself. Born in Calcutta in 1955 in the waning Jewish community, Silliman grew up in a cosmopolitan and Indian world, rather than a Baghdadi Jewish one. Silliman's own travels have taken her to the US, where, as a teacher and scholar, her primary identification is with the "South Asian intellectual and professional diaspora." These rich family portraits convey a sense of the singular roles women played in building and sustaining a complex diaspora in what Silliman calls "Jewish Asia" over the past 150 years. Her sketches of the everyday lives of her fore-mothers -- from the food they ate and the clothes they wore to the social and political relationships they forged -- bring to life a community and a culture, even as they disclose the unexpected and subtle complexities of the colonial encounter as experienced by Jewish women. (41826)      $12.50
Sofaer, Pearl. Baghdad to Bombay: In the Kitchens of My Cousins. Eastsound, WA, Paper Jam Publishing, 2008. ISBN: 978-1-888345-24-7. Octavo, glossy paper covers, 238 pp., b/w photos, recipes, Hindi terms, errata sheet. Softbound. Very Good. "Pearl Sofaer was born and grew up in Bombay, India. Her large family originated in Baghdad and Kirkuk, Iraq, before migrating to Burma and India during the latter part of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th. After the partition of India in 1947, most of her family moved to the four corners of the globe to become a living collage of many nations. One of the results of their rich heritage and embrace of their new cultures has been an expanded repertoire of cuisine, grounded, of course, by the traditional foods of Iraq and India. Food continues to be the centerpiece of celebrations hosted by members of this vast clan, many of who generously opened their kitchens to their cousin." from pearlsofaerdotcom (49383)     $19.95