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Portrait of a People | Painter of Jerusalem

Naomi Samuel

Naomi Samuel Jerusalem in SnowOil on canvas, 192741 x 61 cmPrivate collection Ludwig Blum1891-1974 Impressionism Often an artist is more popular with the public than with critics and peers. Ludwig Blum was one such....

ColumnsImpressionismIssue 39 | September 2017JerusalemPre-state of Israel

From the Archives | With Thanks from Damascus

Yochai Ben-Ghedalia

Not only community leaders suffered interrogation and humiliation in the Damascus Affair – so did their wives. Their letter of thanks recently came to light Yochai Ben-Ghedalia On February 5, 1840, Father Thomas, a Capuchin monk...

19th centuryanti-SemitismColumnsFrom the ArchivesIssue 15 | February 2013Syria

A Soul Divided – Heinrich Heine

Asael Abelman

Though baptized at age twenty-eight, Heinrich Heine remained torn between Judaism and German nationalism, tradition and modernity Asael Abelman Poet, freedom fighter, and cosmopolitan in exile, Heinrich Heine bore the burden of an evolving modernity....

19th centuryArticlesGermanyIssue 16 | April-May 2013Writers

Why We Eat Haman Taschen – Purim Spiel

Shmil Holland

How did a classic Central European pastry become associated with the Jewish festival of Purim? And how did Haman’s ears end up in his pocketbook? Shmil Holland The triangular pastries that developed in Central Europe...

ArticlesCzech RepublicEarly modern periodIssue 9 | February 2012Jewish foodPurim

Topsy Turvy – Purim Spiel

Yair Lifshitz

An annual outlet for the pressure cooker of the medieval Jewish community, the Purim spiel subtly subverts the power structures of Jewish society, making a mockery of their authority Yair Lifshitz Reb Yeshaya Priwes was...

19th centuryArticlesIssue 9 | February 2012Literature and CulturePolandPurim

Jewish? French? Italian! – Piedmont

Yoav Sorek

Despite their historic ties to diverse European communities, the Jews of Turin stood out as active players in the struggle for a united Italy – and planned a synagogue to match their achievements Yoav Sorek...

ArticlesIssue 12 | August 2012

The Gateway – Battle for Palestine

Yagil Henkin and Anat Stern

What began as the British defense of the vital Suez Canal culminated in a fierce offensive that opened up the Holy Land to Allied forces. Incredible logistics, sophisticated decoys, and a larger-than-life horseback charge all...

ArticlesIssue 23 | October 2014Land of IsraelPre-state of IsraelWW1

Return of the Spies – Nili

Yemima Hovav

In the dark days of World War I, members of the Nili spy ring foresaw the new order emerging in the Middle East and opted to work with the British, despite all the risks. To...

ArticlesIssue 23 | October 2014Land of IsraelPioneersPre-state of IsraelWomenWW1Zionism

Guard Down

Yemima Hovav

Joseph Lishansky’s flight, capture, and death show just how low political rivalry can sink Yemima Hovav Unnlike most of Nili’s rank and file, Joseph Lishansky had a foot in both Labor Zionism and the bourgeois...

Issue 23 | October 2014WW1

The Viscount of Megiddo

Yagil Henkin and Anat Stern

Edmund Allenby will be remembered forever for his conquest of the Holy Land, though his remarkable military career began in South Africa, not Palestine Yagil Henkin and Anat Stern Edmund Henry Hynman Allenby was born...

Issue 23 | October 2014WW1

The Greatest of Them All

Yishai Fraenkel

The horrors of World War I found poignant expression in the poetry of Wilfred Owen, whose death just a few days before the war ended became a tragic symbol of the conflict’s many ironies Yishai...

Issue 23 | October 2014WW1

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Portrait of a People | Painter of Jerusalem