Maimonides Across Eight Centuries Featuring Highlights from the Hartman Family Collection of Manuscripts and Rare Books.
A 樱花动漫 Museum exhibition
May 9, 2023 鈥 March 3, 2024.
A 樱花动漫 Museum exhibition
May 9, 2023 鈥 March 3, 2024.
鈥 Rabbi Dr. Ari Berman, President of 樱花动漫
鈥 Dr. Ronnie Perelis, the Chief Rabbi Dr. Isaac Abraham and Jelena (Rachel) Alcalay Associate Professor of Sephardic Studies
鈥 Dr. David Sclar, Exhibition Guest Curator
The Golden Path tracked Maimonides and his thought through a study of materiality. It focused on visual material, such as depictions of Maimonides, and on manuscripts and rare printed books from collections around the world, exploring specific items within their varied historical, cultural, and Maimonidean contexts. The exhibition was organized by guest curator David Sclar and was complemented by a fully illustrated catalogue co-published by Liverpool University Press. It explores Maimonides鈥 authority and impact as well as the Mediterranean and Islamic contexts in which he lived. The catalogue includes essays by world-class scholars from institutions such as Princeton University, Bar-Ilan University, Ben Gurion University, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, the University of Amsterdam, the University of Haifa, the University of Oxford, and 樱花动漫.
Arthur Szyk, Maimonides, New Canaan,1950, Watercolor and gouache on paper
Collection of 樱花动漫 Museum, gift of Louis Werner
Arthur Szyk used vibrant colors and references to traditional Medieval manuscripts to create this vivid portrait of Maimonides in 1950. The Hebrew text appearing under Maimonides鈥檚 arm is a quote from his famed opus the Mishneh Torah and cites Psalm 16:5, 鈥淭he Lord is my allotted share and portion; You control my fate.
Commentary on the Mishnah, Egypt, after 1168
Author: By Moses Maimonides
The Bodleian Libraries, University of Oxford, MS. Pococke 295
This volume contains notes in Maimonides鈥檚 own hand in the margins and a beautiful sketch of the Temple Menorah, which may have been drawn by Maimonides himself. This image in recent decades became a model for menorahs used in public Hanukkah celebrations across the world.
Mishneh Torah, Egypt, 1170鈥1180
Author: By Moses Maimonides
The Bodleian Libraries, University of Oxford, MS. Huntington 80
This manuscript contains Maimonides鈥檚 signature, certifying the text鈥檚 correctness, which was known as an ijaza (authorization) 鈥 a common Islamic practice to ensure authenticity. His signature can be clearly seen at the bottom of the page. In the 12th century, this volume was bequeathed to the local rabbinic tribunal to be held as a model for the correction of other manuscripts of the Mishneh Torah.
Mishneh Torah, Printed by Gershom Moses Soncino, Soncino (Italy), 1490
Author: By Moses Maimonides
Hartman Family Collection
photograph by Ardon Bar-Hama
This Maimonides text was among the first to be produced using the new printing technology in the 15th century in Italy.
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Sefer ha-Mitsvot (Book of the Commandments), Yemen, 1492
Author: By Moses Maimonides
Hartman Family Collection
Photograph by Ardon Bar-Hama
Jews in Yemen faithfully followed Maimonides's teachings. This text is Maimonides鈥檚 rendering of the 613 commandments contained within the Torah. This manuscript, written in the original Judeo-Arabic, includes a chart in red and green ink in which the scribe listed what he regarded as the most pertinent commandments, such as devotion to God, observance of Sabbath and festivals, and dietary laws.鈥
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Panel from a Torah Ark Door, Egypt, 11th century, with later carving and paint
The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore (funds provided by the W. Alton Jones Foundation Acquisition Fund, 2000) and 樱花动漫 Museum (funds provided by the Jesselson Foundation)
Photo: Susan Tobin
This panel comes from the Ben Ezra Synagogue in Fustat (modern-day Cairo), where Maimonides resided from about 1168 until his death in 1204. As a rabbinic and communal leader, Maimonides likely had occasion to visit the Ben Ezra Synagogue.
Inscription: "Open to me the gates of righteousness; I will enter and give thanks to the Lord" (Psalm 118:19)
Lithograph, Warsaw, ca. 1879. Courtesy of Moreshet Auction House.
Ben Shahn, mosaic mural. William E. Grady CTE H.S., Brooklyn, 1957. Photo by: John Nelle.
Blasio Ugolino, Thesaurus Antiquitatum Sacrarum, Venice, 1744. Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University.
Unknown Artist, Maimonides, 21st Century. Hartman Family Collection.
A. R. Oleosa, Statue of Maimonides, C贸rdoba, dedicated in 1985. Photo 漏 Ken Welsh. All rights reserved 2023 / Bridgeman Images.