When Sherlock Holmes met the Maharal of Prague: How did a well-known rabbi in the early 20th century “convert” an Arthur Conan Doyle detective story and present it as an ancient manuscript discovered in an imaginary library?
“The First Step”: Zalman Schachter-Shalomi’s Early Hasidic Meditation Tract
How a rare 1958 booklet helped carry Hasidic contemplative practice from Chabad into Israeli mystical circles and the “Jewish Renewal” movement.
Sefer Yetzirah: Letters as the Building Blocks of the World
While the ancient Greeks feared the invention of writing, an early Jewish mystical work viewed it as the foundation of everything that exists.
The Lost Train: The Story of the Transport That Never Reached Theresienstadt
A 139-year-old book acquired by the National Library contained a unique and unexpected keepsake from a victim of the Nazis in the Netherlands. Who was Vroutje Bloemist? Why did her story suddenly attract our attention decades after her death? And what became of the Nazis’ “Lost Train,” aboard which Bloemist was a passenger?
Did It Exist or Not? The Missing Order of the Jerusalem Talmud
Discoveries and disappointments, rumors and accusations, fraudsters and conspiracies—along with an adventurous journey across the dusty roads of Turkey. This is the story of a controversy that shook the world of Torah study and academic research 120 years ago.
The Jewish Mother Who Defeated Emperor Charles V
A Jewish mother will do everything for her children, but in this case – “everything” included taking on the Holy Roman Emperor himself and building a web of intrigue that spanned continents and several royal and noble houses. This is the story of Gracia Mendes Nasi, otherwise known as Dona Gracia.
The Strange, Dark Journey of a Book of the Zohar
An old, crumbling binding of a 16th-century book of the Zohar was nearly lost to oblivion in the National Library’s archives. A few faint pencil markings on the cover caught the eye of a librarian, revealing surprising secrets about the book it once encased. Join us on a fascinating, almost detective-like journey through the pages and bindings of this remarkable book, uncovering its perilous, winding path before it reached the National Library.
The Undercover Operation to Rescue the Crown of Damascus
The incredible story of how a priceless Hebrew manuscript written nearly 600 years ago was smuggled out of Syria and eventually brought to the National Library of Israel
From Hitler’s Beer Hall to the National Library in Jerusalem
In the immediate aftermath of the Holocaust, a large number of Jewish books were discovered by the Jewish Brigade in a famous Munich beer hall considered to be the cradle of Nazism. How did the books end up there? And after they were discovered, where did some of them disappear to?
The Search for a Jewish Book That Was Ordered to Be Destroyed 470 Years Ago
This incredible story begins with a quarrel among printers in 16th century Venice, which soon escalated to the point of burning Hebrew books on the orders of the Inquisition. The story continues with a globe-spanning search for a particular book saved from that fire. How does it end? With a twist of course…
