The book Eliezer-Zusman of Brody: The Early Modern Synagogue Painter and His World focuses on the work methods of the synagogue painter Eliezer-Zusman of Brody, as a case study of Jewish cultural and artistic migration from Eastern Europe to German lands.

The book Eliezer-Zusman of Brody: The Early Modern Synagogue Painter and His World focuses on the work methods of the synagogue painter Eliezer-Zusman of Brody, as a case study of Jewish cultural and artistic migration from Eastern Europe to German lands.

Warsaw and Jerusalem deals with different aspects of the inherent paradoxes of Jewish-Polish relations. Written by scholars from Israel and from Poland, who study history, culture, education, and politics, this book forms a unique interdisciplinary collage. Thus, it has a twofold advantage: as an academic insight in the field of Jewish studies; and as a social bonder of an academic community that has its representatives in universities in Israel and in Poland. This project is bound to be an inspiring source for scholars of Jewish studies and Jewish history. In college or university classes, the collection of a variety of chapters will aid students who compose their assignments and need brainwave resources in the field. With a contribution to the deep comprehension of the ongoing discourse about historical as well as nowadays relations between Israel – that represents the Jewish people – and Poland, this book will also appeal to institutes that commemorate Jewish community life in Poland, particularly those who concentrate on Holocaust memorial and Holocaust studies. Many of these institutes aim to be centers where life before and after the Holocaust can be studied, and this book certainly falls within the framework of a resource-book for such cause. As opposed to other volumes in this field, this book forms – to a certain extent – a primary source. It talks less about Jewish culture or education from a scholarly examining angle, and prefers to present Jewish culture and education with a broad variety of examples. Additionally, it is highly updated, it tells the full story not only about pre-Holocaust Jewish culture in Poland, but also about current educational projects. All in all, it is not a stand-alone handbook for Jewish-Polish studies; but it can certainly function as an initial source-book for anyone who studies the subject.

The volume explores the stone carved shrines for the scrolls of the Mosaic Law from the mid-sixteenth to the mid-seventeenth century synagogues in the former Polish Kingdom. Created on the margin of mainstream art and at a crossroad of diverse cultures, artistic traditions, aesthetic attitudes and languages, these indoor architectural structures have hitherto not been the subject of a monographic study. Revisiting and integrating multiple sources, the author re-evaluates the relationship of the Jewish culture in Renaissance Poland with the medieval Jewish heritage, sepulchral art of the Polish court and nobles, and earlier adaptations of the Christian revival of classical antiquity by Italian Jews. The book uncovers the evolution of artistic patronage, aesthetics, expressions of identities, and emerging visions among a religious minority on the cusp of the modern age.

The first cartographic reference book on one of today’s most important religious movements Historical Atlas of Hasidism is the very first cartographic reference book on one of the modern era's most vibrant and important mystical movements. Featuring seventy-four large-format maps and a wealth of illustrations, charts, and tables, this one-of-a-kind atlas charts Hasidism's emergence and expansion; its dynasties, courts, and prayer houses; its spread to the New World; the crisis of the two world wars and the Holocaust; and Hasidism's remarkable postwar rebirth. Historical Atlas of Hasidism demonstrates how geography has influenced not only the social organization of Hasidism but also its spiritual life, types of religious leadership, and cultural articulation. It focuses not only on Hasidic leaders but also on their thousands of followers living far from Hasidic centers. It examines Hasidism in its historical entirety, from its beginnings in the eighteenth century until today, and draws on extensive GIS-processed databases of historical and contemporary records to present the most complete picture yet of this thriving and diverse religious movement. Historical Atlas of Hasidism is visually stunning and easy to use, a magnificent resource for anyone seeking to understand Hasidism's spatial and spiritual dimensions, or indeed anybody interested in geographies of religious movements past and present. Provides the first cartographic interpretation of Hasidism Features seventy-four maps and numerous illustrations Covers Hasidism in its historical entirety, from its eighteenth-century origins to today Charts Hasidism's emergence and expansion, courts and prayer houses, modern resurgence, and much more Offers the first in-depth analysis of Hasidism's egalitarian—not elitist—dimensions Draws on extensive GIS-processed databases of historical and contemporary records

The Database is a companion volume to The Plight of Jewish Deserted Wives, 18511900 (978-1-78976-168-9). It comprises circa 5000 entries, providing name, date and circumstance, with extensive cross-reference to aid future researchers. Agunot (Agunah, sing., meaning anchored in Hebrew) is a Jewish term describing women who cannot remarry because their husband has disappeared. According to Jewish law (Halacha) a woman can get out of the marriage only if the husband releases her by granting a divorce writ (Get), if he dies, or if his whereabouts is not known. Women whose husbands cannot be located, and who have not been granted a Get, are considered Agunot. The Agunah phenomenon was of major concern in East European Jewry and much referred to in Hebrew and Yiddish media and fiction. Most nineteenth-century Agunot cases came from Eastern Europe, where most Jews resided (twentieth-century Agunot were primarily in North America, and will be the subject of a forthcoming book). Seven variations of Agunot have been identified: Deserted wives; women who refused to receive, or were not granted, a Get; widowed women whose brothers-in-law refused to grant them permission to marry someone else (Halitza); women whose husbands remains were not found; improperly or incorrectly written Gets; women whose husbands became mentally ill and were not competent to grant a Get; women refused a Get by husbands who had converted to Christianity or Islam.