Sample Sources

The sources below are those contained in our three curated collections—covering themes of Passover, Gender Roles, and Holocaust Resistance. They represent a fraction of the thousands of sources that will be available when the full site launches in 2024.

The Tithe

[ . . . ] The sofer’s work is poorly compensated. There is an old proverb about how the soferim never grow wealthy in the land of Israel. I don’t know who gave birth to that pearl detached from the…

Medical-Critical Letter Written by Doctor Joseph Vita Castelli to His Friend, a Doctor, Regarding a Serious and Complicated Case of Acute Fever

Art, which gives men the means to persevere and cure some sicknesses, seems nowadays to depend on philosophy, which is that great and clear source that produces all that is luminous and useful. I am…

A Din Toyre mit Gott/Der kadish fun rabi Levi Yitshok (A Court Case with God/The Kaddish of Rabbi Levi Isaac)

“Good morning, Master of the universe! I, Levi-Yitzchok of Berdytschev, have come to hold Judgment with You concerning Your people Israel. What have You against Israel? Why have you imposed…

Printed page with French text, simple border, and banner with Hebrew text on top.

Aggudat Shirim

Aggudat Shirim (Collection of Songs) was one of several collections of synagogue music published by Samuel Naumbourg between 1847 and 1874. It included a scholarly article about Jewish music.

Front view of building exterior with curved tile roof and arched windows and metal fence around perimeter.

Pinkas Synagogue (Prague)

The Pinkas Synagogue is the second-oldest extant synagogue in Prague. It is believed that a synagogue was found in that location as early as 1492. The structure now housing the synagogue was founded…

Photograph of room with raised central platform with columns and several chandeliers.

Synagogue Mejor (Bursa, Turkey)

The Synagogue Mejor is a synagogue in Bursa, Turkey, built in the late fifteenth century by Jews who settled in the Ottoman Empire after being expelled from Majorca. Its name “Mejor” commemorates the…

Print engraving of two buildings with tile roofs next to each other, one of mostly wood and the other of stone, with several people standing in front of them, and German writing below.

Jewish Wedding at a Synagogue in Fürth

This print depicting a Jewish wedding in Fürth is from the beginning of the eighteenth century, a period of prosperity for the city’s Jewish community. There were between 350 and 400 Jewish families…

Broadsheet with Dutch text on left and right margins, with large illustrated map in the middle of many squares and lines. Around the map are five images in squares: a man in hat and moustache, layers of priestly garments, a smaller map, rectangular building, and items of worship such as a candelabrum.

Broadsheet Accompanying Model of the Tabernacle

This broadsheet is based on a famous model of the Temple in Jerusalem, owned by Jacob Judah Leon, a rabbi from the Netherlands. Probably produced in Amsterdam, the poster includes illustrations of the…

Photograph of room with vaulted ceiling, gilded walls, and pews.

Oratorio Israelitico Synagogue, Casale Monferrato, Italy

This Piedmontese synagogue, built in 1595, is typical of many synagogues constructed in times and places where Jews did not want to call attention to themselves because of fear of persecution. From…

Photograph of rectangular room with arched windows, floor covered in sand, wooden cabinet on far wall, wooden benches on left side and along walls, and wooden lectern on right side.

Tzedek ve-Shalom Synagogue, Suriname

Built in 1736, the Tzedek ve-Shalom synagogue served a Sephardic congregation of Spanish and Portuguese Jews who had migrated from Holland to Suriname. Located in Suriname’s capital of Paramaribo, the…

Painting of woman standing in tall hat with one hand pointing at her mouth.

Jewish Woman at Home

This Jewish woman of the Ottoman Empire wears a blue jacket over a black blouse, with red shoes and a tall hat draped in a veil. The title “Dona Ebrea in casa” translates to "Jewish woman at home."

Silver pitcher with floral shapes and inscribed designs, and shield on lid with Hebrew inscription.

Burial Society Pitcher and Shield

This pitcher from Nuremberg, Germany, was made around 1650. Cast in silver, the repoussé piece is finely traced and engraved with floral patterns. On its lid sits a shield engraved with a Hebrew…