New upload! Rosenthall prints

The Lowcountry Digital Library has made available 725 additional prints from the William A. Rosenthall Judaica Collection. These prints come from portfolios covering the topics of synagogues (Germany, Italy, United States), ceremonies (life cycle and synagogal), ceremonies (calendrical and special), places (walls, ghettos, buildings), costumes (Africa), costumes (Moses, priests, ritual), portraits, cemeteries, and German-language caricatures.

Below, a sampling of the prints from these portfolios. To see all digitized prints, search the Lowcountry Digital Library: William A. Rosenthall Judaica Collection – Prints and Photographs.


Interior of the Hamburg Temple (Israelitischer Tempel) in the Poolstraße, which was inaugurated on September 5, 1844.


Exterior of the Neue Synagoge (New Synagogue) in Hannover.


Interior of the former location of Temple Emanu-El at 5th Avenue and 43rd Street in New York.


Mole Antonelliana in Turin. The structure was originally conceived as a synagogue.


Reading from the Torah. Signed by the artist Hermann Struck. The text reads : “Blessed be He, who in His holiness gave the Torah to his people Israel.”


A boy during his bar mitzvah ceremony. From the article “The Jews in America” by Alfred Trumble, published in the August 1877 edition of Frank Leslie’s Popular Monthly.


Marriage ceremony of Alphonse James de Rothschild and Leonora de Rothschild. Published in the March 14, 1857, edition of The Illustrated London News.


Jewish divorce. Etching by Jan Luyken. From Kerk-zeeden ende gewoonten die huiden in gebruik zijn onder de jooden by Leon Modena, published Amsterdam: Timotheus ten Hoorn.


Illustration by Alphonse Lévy depicting the Jewish mourning custom of sitting shiva. From La vie juive by David-Léon Cahun.


Yom Kippur in the Portuguese Synagogue in Amsterdam. Engraving by Abraham Jacobsz. Hulk after a drawing by Abraham Pietersz. Hulk. From Oude en tegenwoordige staat en geschiedenis van alle godsdiensten, Volume 1, by William Hurd, published Amsterdam: M. de Bruyn, 1781-1791.


Ceremony of Havdalah. From the article “The Jews in New York–II” by Richard Wheatley, published in the February 1892 edition of The Century Magazine.


Sukkot in the synagogue. With Hebrew text of Leviticus 23:40 : “And ye shall take you on the first day the fruit of goodly trees, branches of palm-trees, and boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook, and ye shall rejoice before the Lord your God seven days.” Frontispiece to Maḥazor le-ḥag ha-Sukot ule-shabat she-betokho : ke-minhag Ashkenaz : meduyaḳ heṭev u-mevoʼar yafeh u-meturgam Ashkenazit, published Sulzbach: Buchdruckerey von S. Arnstein & Sohne.


The priestly blessing on Yom Kippur. From Libellus de Judaica confessione by Johannes Pfefferkorn, published Cologne: Johannes Landen.


Lighting a menorah on Hanukkah. From Philologus hebræo-mixtus by Johannes Leusden, published Ultrajecti : ex officinâ Francisci Halma.


Western Wall in Jerusalem. Etching signed by the artist Henri Le Riche.


Judenplatz in Vienna. Engraving by Johann Wenzel Zinke after Salomon Kleiner. Printed Vienna: F. Bauer.


Jewish quarter of Chelm. Etching signed by the artist Lionel S. Reiss. This work is alternately entitled “Palisades of the Poor – Chelm.”


Jewish quarter of Tétouan. Etching signed by the artist James McBey.


Israelitisches Krankenhaus Hamburg. Drawn, printed, and published Hamburg: Peter Suhr.


Jewish merchant from Algeria. Engraving by Monnin after Francois Claudius Compte-Calix. From Musée cosmopolite, published Paris: Ancienne Mon Aubert.


Jewish children from Algeria. Illustration by Louis Lassalle. Lithograph printed Paris: J. Rigo et Cie. From L’Algérie de la jeunesse by Christian Pitois, published Paris : Alph. Desesserts.


Married Jewish woman from Algeria. Wood engraving by Léopold Deghouy after Théodore Frère. From L’Afrique française by Christian Pitois, published Paris: A. Barbier.


Jewish woman from Algiers. Wood engraving by Pierre Verdeil after Hippolyte Louis Emile Pauquet. Published in Les Français peints par eux-mêmes, Volume 3.


Jewish women from Oran. Lithograph by E. de Laguerenne. From L’Art en province, published Moulins: P.-A. Desrosiers.


Jews from Tunis. Engraving by Edouard Willmann after Emile Rouargue. From La Méditerranée, ses îles et ses bords by Louis Enault, published Paris: Morizot.


Moses and the Ten Commandments. Mezzotint by Elias Christoph Heiss after Johann Jakob von Sandrart. Frontispiece to Biblia Ectypa : Bildnußen auß Heiliger Schrifft deß Alt- und Neuen Testaments by Christoph Weigel, published Augsburg: Weigel.


Moses receiving the Ten Commandments. Wood engraving by Richard Julius Jungtow after Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld. From Die Bibel in Bildern : 240 Darstellungen, erfunden und auf Holz gezeichnet von Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld, published Leipzig: Wigand.


Wood engraving by Howard Simon depicting Moses holding out his staff and the Israelites crossing the Red Sea.


Vestments of the Jewish high priest. Engraving by Johann Carl Joseph Störcklin. From Biblia, das ist: die gantze Heilige Schrifft Alten und Neuen Testaments, translated by Martin Luther, published Basel: Thurneysen.


Saul before the Jewish high priest. Engraving by Giovanni Bigatti. From Le Costume ancien et moderne, ou, Histoire du gouvernement, de la milice, de la religion, des arts, sciences et usages de tous les peuples anciens et modernes, Asia, Volume 3, by Giulio Ferrario, published Milan: De l’imprimerie de l’editeur, 1815-1829.


Vestments of a Jewish high priest. From Tableau historique des costumes, des moeurs et des usages des principaux peuples de l’antiquité et du moyen age, Volume 2, by Robert von Spalart, published Metz: Collignon.


Portraits of 40 rabbis throughout Jewish history, with a larger, central image of Maimonides. Includes Samuel Edels, Isaac ben Jacob Alfasi, Isaac Abravanel,the Maggid of Kozhnitz, the Vilna Gaon, Moses Sofer, Akiva Eger, Jonathan Eybeschütz, David Nieto, Dov Berush Meisels, Meir Leibush, Shimon Sofer, Mordecai Banet, Abraham Tiktin, Yechezkel Landau, and others.


Rabbi Gotthold Salomon.


The contest between boxer Daniel Mendoza and his former mentor Richard Humphries. The text reads : “This Boxing Match took place at Doncaster, Sept. 29th, 1790, on a Twenty four foot Stage and was the third Public Contest between those two pugilists. It lasted for about an Hour & five Minutes & was decisive in favour of Mendoza.”


Scenes from the execution by hanging of financier Joseph Süß Oppenheimer: his exit from Stuttgart under armed guard, above, and his hanging outside the city, below.


Josephus (born Joseph ben Matityahu).


Moses Mendelssohn.


Jewish peddler Mordechai Löb (1745-1817) of Schlüchtern, known as the “Preusje von Schlüchtern.


Chief Rabbi Maier Zipser (1815-1869).


Tomb of Absalom, Tomb of Benei Hezir, and Tomb of Zechariah in the Valley of Jehoshaphat (Kidron Valley) in Jerusalem.


Tombs of the Sanhedrin in Jerusalem.


Tomb of Zechariah in the Valley of Jehoshaphat (Kidron Valley) in Jerusalem.


Old Jewish Cemetery in Frankfurt am Main.


Jewish cemetery in Gorlice.


Black-and-white engraving depicting, above, Simon of Trent, whose disappearance and murder led to charges of blood libel against the Jewish community of Trent; below, an image of a Judensau (Jews’ sow). This engraving is a copy of a wall painting on the bridge tower of Frankfurt am Main; the bridge was demolished in 1801. “In 1475 on Maundy Thursday, the child Simon, who was 2 years old, was murdered by the Jews.” The text reads : “Oy vey Rabbi Anschl, oy, oy! Mausch, oy vey, oy, oy! Drink Mauchi, drink the milk! Eat, Rabbi, this filth! That’s your greatest delicacy!”


Hand-colored etching depicting a sentimental contemplation of the moon. The text reads : “Not blanched, not plated, / And yet such a magnificent gleam! / Oh, my soul is deeply moved / It must be made of silver!”


Hand-colored etching of a scene from Karl Borromäus Alexander Sessa’s satirical play “Unser Verkehr” (The Company We Keep). Etching after Johann Michael Voltz. The text reads : “Sir Corporal, Sir Officer, Sir General! Have mercy, have great mercy and don’t leave me under fire. I can’t stand it any more, I can’t endure it, I can’t smell the gun powder any longer, I am going to faint!”


Caricature of Moritz Mohl at a lectern during the 1848 Frankfurt Parliament, as other members of parliament approach him in anger. At the Frankfurt Parliament, Mohl argued against legal equality for Jews; he was constantly interrupted by other members of the assembly. Caricature by Alfons von Boddien. Lithograph printed Frankfurt am Main: Eduard Gustav May.


The text reads : –“Oh, God – Schmul – you’re also invited to rich Salomon’s — and don’t even have a clean shirt on?” –“You don’t either – !” –“You know what, you put my shirt on – and I’ll put on yours, that way it’ll look like we both just mixed up the laundry!”


Caricature published in the Düsseldorfer Monathefte, Band 9, No. 15. The text reads: –Ascher: “God forbid Isaac – I come upon you – in such company – so it’s true – you have beomce a goy – if Äti knew that – he would roll over in his grave.” –Isaac: “God – Nu Ascher – so what – in three weeks my brother will be a Christian as well – then Äti will roll over one more time – this way he will return to his original position.”

New upload! Rosenthall postcards

The Lowcountry Digital Library has made available 705 additional postcards from the William A. Rosenthall Judaica Collection. These postcards come from three portfolios covering the topics of Jewish authors and artists, rabbis and political leaders, and folk art.

Below, a sampling of the postcards from these portfolios. To see all digitized postcards, search the Lowcountry Digital Library: William A. Rosenthall Judaica Collection – Postcards.


Poet, editor, and critic Ya’akov Fichmann.


Poet and novelist Zalman Shneour.


Author and literary critic Isidor [Yisroel] Eliashev (pen name Bal-Makhshoves).


Author Itshe Meyer Vaysenberg.


Poet and essayist Menahem Boraisha.


Editors of socialist and radical newspapers and journals in the United States.


Author Yona Rozenfeld.


Yiddish authors at the Czernowitz Conference, 1908. From left to right : Avrom Reyzen, Yitskhok Leybush Peretz (I. L. Peretz), Sholem Asch, Khayim Zhitlovski, and Hersh Dovid Nomberg.


Alfred Dreyfus and his defenders: Bernard Lazare, Fernand Labori, Georges Picquart, and Auguste Scheurer-Kestner.


Mendel Beilis and his defenders during his trial for ritual murder: Oskar Osipovich Gruzenberg, Vasily Maklakov, Nikolai Platonovich Karabchevsky, Alexander Zarudny, and Dmitry Grigorovich-Barsky.


Chief Rabbi Joseph Hermann Hertz, Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth.


Rabbi Hayyim Moshe Bejerano, Chief Rabbi of Turkey.


Chaplains in the Germany Army during World War I, including Jewish chaplain Rabbi Jacob Sonderling.


Design of the Jewish National Fund’s commemorative Theodor Herzl stamp, featuring Herzl looking toward the Tower of David in Jerusalem, as Jewish pioneers march to work below.


Arthur Balfour’s reception at the electrical power station in Tel Aviv during his 1925 visit to Palestine. Balfour (fourth from right); to his right, Pinhas Rutenberg. Meir Dizengoff stands second from right.


Rabbi Ben-Zion Meir Hai Uziel addressing the first meeting of the Assembly of Representatives on October 7, 1920, in Jerusalem.


Yitsḥak Grünbaum, first Interior Minister of Israel.


Yekusiel Portnoy (1872–1941) (pseudonym Noyekh), leader of the Bund in Poland.


A boy learning to lay tefillin before his bar mitzvah, including the blessing for putting on tefillin : “Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the universe, Who has sanctified us with His commandments and has commanded us regarding the commandment of tefillin.”


A Jewish marriage ceremony. Text excerpted from the Sheva Brachot : “Voices of joy and gladness, voices of groom and bride.”


Blowing the shofar on Rosh Hashanah.


Lighting Sabbath candles.


Entering the synagogue. Original illustration by Friedrich Kaskeline.


The ceremony of tashlikh. The Brooklyn Bridge can be seen in the background.


Mayim achronim (hand washing) before Birkat Hamazon. Original illustration by Jacob Keller.


Taking the Torah scroll out of the Torah ark. Original illustration by S. Seeberger.

New Upload! Rosh Hashanah cards

The Lowcountry Digital Library has just uploaded approximately 400 Rosh Hashanah postcards from the William A. Rosenthall Judaica Collection. In addition to New Year’s cards with beautiful motifs such as flowers, birds, and landscapes, a good portion of these postcards depict scenes from Jewish life, including holiday celebrations, life cycle events, ritual objects, and themes such as Zionism and emigration.

Below, a sampling of the postcards from the collection that depict these themes. To see more Rosh Hashanah postcards, search for “Rosh Hashanah” in the Lowcountry Digital Library: William A. Rosenthall Judaica Collection – Postcards.


Rosh Hashanah postcard depicting a festival meal.


Kiddush. The text reads : “And you gave us festivals for happiness.”


Havdalah. The text is excerpted from the blessing over the Havdalah candle : “Who creates the lights of the fire.”


Entering the Sukkah with the etrog during the celebration of Sukkot.


A father and his children on their way to synagogue for Hakafot on Simchat Torah.


Hakafot on Simchat Torah. The text reads : “Rejoice and exult in the joy of Torah.”


Kiddush Levana on Motzei Yom Kippur.


Yom Kippur ritual of malkot (lashes).


A family on the way to synagogue.


Greetings after the synagogue service.


A group of boys reciting the Shema Yisrael at the bedside of a kimpeturin, a mother recovering after childbirth.


The Mitzvah Tantz.


A father blessing his children.


Zionist Rosh Hashanah postcard.


Zionist Rosh Hashanah postcard.


Candles, kiddush cup, and spice box used in the ceremony of Havdalah. Text at the bottom of the postcard reads : “I will raise the cup of deliverance and call upon the name of the Lord.”


Torah scroll.


Rosh Hashanah postcard featuring a shofar. Text at the top of the postcard reads : “It is a day of blowing the horn unto you.”


Kapparot. The following is recited during the ceremony : “This is my exchange, this is my substitute, this is my atonement.”


Same Rosh Hashanah postcard as above. In this postcard, the head of the rooster used for kapparot is substituted with the face of Nicholas II of Russia.


Rosh Hashanah postcard depicting American Jews holding out their arms to their relatives arriving from Russia. Above are the Imperial Russian coat of arms and American eagle holding a banner with the text excerpted from Psalms 17:8 : “Hide me in the shadow of Thy wings.”


Jewish immigrants to the United States on Ellis Island.

New Upload! Jewish Institutions

The Lowcountry Digital Library has recently uploaded almost 150 postcards featuring a variety of Jewish institutions, including colleges, yeshivas, Talmud Torahs, orphanages, old age homes, and hospitals. The majority of these institutions are located in major American cities such as Atlanta, New York, Chicago, Cleveland, Cincinnati, New Orleans, Baltimore, St. Louis, Denver, and Philadelphia. A smaller number of these institutions are located abroad in Israel, Poland, and Germany. Several postcards feature charitable funds and institutions of the Deutsch-Israelitischer Gemeindebund.

Below is a sampling of some of the recently uploaded items. For more postcards of Jewish institutions, search the Lowcountry Digital Library: William A. Rosenthall Judaica Collection – Postcards.

Mount Sinai Hospital, New York

Hebrew Orphan Asylum of New York

Hebrew Orphans Home, Atlanta

Orthodox Jewish Home for the Aged, Chicago

Jewish Orphan Asylum, Cleveland

Hebrew Union College, Cincinnati

Jewish Home for the Aged and Infirm, Cincinnati

Jewish Widows and Orphans Home, New Orleans

Jewish Consumptives’ Relief Society, Denver

Yeshivat Lomza, Petah Tikva, Israel

Talmud Torah, Łódź, Poland

Fürsorgeerziehungsanstalt für schulentlassene israelitische Mädchen, Cöpenick, Germany

Jüdische Arbeiter-Kolonie, E.V., Weissensee

New Upload! Eastern European Synagogues

In December, the Lowcountry Digital Library uploaded 430 new postcards from the Rosenthall Collection. These postcards come from two portfolios containing postcards of synagogues in countries in Eastern Europe, including the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland, Hungary, Ukraine, Lithuania, Russia, Romania, Serbia, Belarus, Latvia, Estonia, and Bulgaria. A great many of these postcards display images of synagogues that have since been destroyed or are no longer used as synagogues.

Below is a sampling of some of the recently uploaded items. For more postcards of Eastern European synagogues, search the Lowcountry Digital Library: William A. Rosenthall Judaica Collection – Postcards.

Synagogue (Hradec Králové, Czech Republic)

Synagogue (Hlohovec, Slovakia)

Great Synagogue (Łomża, Poland)

Synagogue (Tiszafüred, Hungary)

Karaite Kenesa (Yevpatoria, Ukraine)

Great Synagogue of Vilna (Vilnius, Lithuania)

Choral Synagogue (Samara, Russia)

Orthodox Synagogue (Oradea, Romania)

Synagogue (Subotica, Serbia)

Synagogue (Lida, Belarus)

Synagogue (Liepāja, Latvia)

Synagogue (Tartu, Estonia)

Synagogue (Sofia, Bulgaria)

New Upload! Northeast and Midwest United States Synagogues

We are excited to announce that the Lowcountry Digital Library recently uploaded approximately 300 new postcards from the Rosenthall Collection! These postcards of synagogues in the Northeast and Midwest United States include some of the country’s oldest synagogues, such as Rockdale Temple (K.K. Bene Israel) in Cincinnati, OH; Touro Synagogue in Newport, RI; Temple Mishkan Israel in New Haven, CT; Ohabei Shalom in Brookline, MA; Temple Israel in Boston, MA; Congregation Shearith Israel in New York, NY; and Eldridge Street Synagogue in New York, NY.

For more postcards of United States synagogues, search the Lowcountry Digital Library: William A. Rosenthall Judaica Collection – Postcards.

Rockdale Temple (K K. Benai Israel), Cincinnati, Ohio

Touro Synagogue, Newport, Rhode Island

Temple Mishkan Israel, New Haven, Connecticut

Temple Ohabei Shalom, Brookline, Massachusetts

Temple Israel, Boston, Massachusetts

Congregation Shearith Israel, New York, New York

Eldridge Street Synagogue, New York, New York

Rare Find: New Shaarai Thora Synagogue, Worcester, MA

While processing Rabbi William A. Rosenthall’s extensive collection of postcards, Processing Archivist Amy Lazarus came across a postcard with a photograph of a synagogue in her hometown of Worcester, MA. Being unfamiliar with the synagogue, Amy talked to her family and researched online to find out more about the synagogue, its history, and its significance for the Jewish community of Worcester. Below, Amy shares what she discovered.

Recently, I had the pleasure of experiencing firsthand the value of Rabbi Rosenthall’s impressive postcard collection. While processing, I came across an image of a synagogue in my hometown of Worcester, MA. Not recognizing the building, labeled New Shaarai Thora Synagogue I asked my father if he knew where the synagogue was located.

My father informed me the photograph might be a rare image, as that particular synagogue had been badly damaged due to an arson-related fire and had long been out of use as a synagogue. He then shared a surprising story: my great grandfather had actually been one of the one of the early congregants of the synagogue!

This, of course, prompted me to begin researching the synagogue to learn more. And soon the value of the Rosenthall Collection became even more apparent.

I found that the synagogue had actually been Worcester’s first Modern Orthodox synagogue and a significant part of the city’s Jewish history. Unfortunately, the building had been remodeled and converted to condominiums after the fire. While the building still stands, I could find no pictures of it prior to this conversion online.

While I could easily locate another building in use today as the Shaarai Torah Synagogue in Worcester, I could find no photograph of the building on the postcard in the Rosenthall collection.

Eventually, I learned that the synagogue I did keep finding was a second Shaarai Torah synagogue that was opened on the west side of the city. This became known as Shaarai Torah West, with the original synagogue known as Shaarai Torah East. Shaarai Torah West became an independent congregation in 1964, and Shaarai Torah East continued to operate until it was the last remaining synagogue on the East side of the city.

The synagogue on the postcard was Shaarai Torah East, the first of the two buildings, which opened its doors in 1906. The synagogue served the community of Worcester for an entire century, until the devastating fire forced it to close its doors as the last synagogue on the east side. Despite its role as a prominent synagogue in the history of Worcester’s Jewish community, today its only online presence is a lone Wikipedia article which features the remodeled building as condominiums.

It appeared I was holding one of what may be only a few photos of the Shaarai Torah east prior to remodeling. If not for Rabbi Rosenthall’s collection, the ability to easily see the original Shaarai Torah synagogue, Worcester’s very last east side synagogue, might have been lost.

This experience served incredibly well to demonstrate just how valuable the collection will be to researchers and to preserving the history of Jewish communities all over the world.

Uploading hiatus

The Lowcountry Digital Library is currently developing a new open source digital repository that will be launched in early 2012. The good news is this new repository will be much more dynamic and user-friendly than the current content management system used by LDL. The bad news is we are not able to upload additional content until the new system is up and running. However, we are still moving forward with scanning, metadata, and rehousing efforts. I will continue to post selected images from the new scanned portfolios.

Recently, we finished up a portfolio of images depicting Jewish ceremonies and customs, such as weddings, circumcisions, burials, and prayer. The following is a sampling of our favorites.

Caricatures and cemeteries portfolios now available

Over 300 images were uploaded to the Lowcountry Digital Library earlier this week. Approximately 80 images from Rosenthall’s “Jewish caricatures” portfolio were added to the prints and photographs digital collection. Many of these images play upon Jewish stereotypes and illustrate anti-Semitic beliefs.

College of Charleston student Cameron Moon scanned, rehoused, and created metadata for this portfolio. One of her favorite items is the hand-drawn illustration below, which stood out among the printed images that make up the majority of Rosenthall’s collection.

Additionally, over 200 images of Jewish cemeteries, tombs, and monuments were uploaded to the postcards digital collection.