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Albert Einstein thanks German Jewish Physician for a book on Anti-Semitism, “our eternal unsolvable problem”
ALBERT EINSTEIN,
Autograph Letter Signed, to Isidore W. Held, Princeton, April 19, 1944. In German. 1 p., 8½ x 11 in.
“our eternal unsolvable problem...is a sickness of the others, and not our own, meaning that the most important thing is not to catch it and to keep our balance—as long as they don’t beat us to death.”
Item #25317, $16,000
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Israel’s Declaration of Independence - Scarce Official Gazette
[ISRAEL],
Newspaper. Iton Rishmi [Official Gazette], May 14, 1948. Bulletin. Tel Aviv, Israel: Provisional Government of Israel. In Hebrew. 3 pp., 8 x 13 in.
The first issue of the Official Gazette of the Israeli provisional government, contains the first printing of “The Declaration of the Establishment of the State of Israel,” the new nation’s Declaration of Independence. The names of the 37 members of the Provisional Government who signed the document, headed by David Ben-Gurion (1886-1973), are listed on the second page.
Item #25671.10, $5,500
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“Jerusalem of Gold,” Penned by Naomi Shemer in June 1967 with Verse Added to Celebrate the Recapture of Jerusalem
NAOMI SHEMER,
Autograph Manuscript Signed of the lyrics to “Yerushalayim Shel Zahav” / “Jerusalem of Gold,” handwritten music manuscript, and a printed booklet with her signature, all in Hebrew.
Item #25672, $125,000
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Golda Meir (Goldie Meyerson) Encourages the Jewish Pioneer Women’s Organization
GOLDA MEIR,
Autograph Document Signed, draft telegram, in English, on verso of blank American Honor Roll certificate for the Palestine Labor Maritime Company, c. 1938. 2 pp., 4 x 8½ in.
“May the spirit of Chalutziut [pioneering] from Palestine spur you on to even greater results”
Item #23945, $1,400
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Henrietta Szold asks a doctor to become a life member of Zionist Organization of America
HENRIETTA SZOLD,
Autograph Letter Signed “Henrietta Szold”, one page, 5½ x 9 in., on stationary of the Hotel Alexandria, July 28, 1927, New York, NY, addressed to Elisha Friedman.
Item #25625, $900
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Many of the leading Jews of Newport and New York sign 1818 land sale from estate of Benjamin Seixas to Oliver Hazard Perry
[EARLY AMERICAN JUDAICA]. NAPHTALI PHILLIPS,
Manuscript Document Signed, 1p, folio, 14½ x 21½ in., November 30, 1818.
Elaborate receipt for Newport, Rhode Island sale of land from estate of Benjamin Seixas (1747-1817) signed by numerous members of his family and members of the Spanish-Portuguese Jewish Congregation who were heirs to the property, known now as the Buliod-Perry House at 29 Touro Street, to Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry, the great naval hero of the Battle of Lake Erie in 1813.
Item #25466, $18,000
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Ben-Gurion declines Haifa Mayor’s invitation to attend Israel’s first industrial exhibition
DAVID BEN-GURION,
Typed Letter Signed, in Hebrew, to Abba Khoushy, April 20, 1956, Jerusalem, Israel. 1 p., 6⅛ x 7¾ in.
“The darkening clouds in our country’s skies… not just the IDF will be put to a supreme test, but the staying power of the economy as well, and first and foremost our industrial capacity…”
Item #25215, $1,800
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Former Israeli Prime Minister thanks author for her book, ‘The Image of this Generation through Poetry and Songs’
DAVID BEN-GURION,
Autograph Letter Signed in Hebrew, to Nora Hauben, March 21, 1971. 1 p., 5 x 8¼ in.
Item #24956, $650
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Ben-Gurion tries to lessen the power of religious parties in Israel’s government
DAVID BEN-GURION,
Autograph Letter Signed as Minister of Defense, in Hebrew, 1p., 5½ x 8 in. Sdeh Boker [Israel], May 5, 1954. To Dr. Ben-Zion Ben Shalom. Fine condition.
“I am pleased that our State is a secular state and not under a religious regime.… I do not object to the spreading of religion in the way it is done in all democratic states through synagogues, Yeshivas and youth movements…”
Item #22765, $3,600
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David Ben-Gurion on Moshe Sharett’s Resignation as Foreign Minister
DAVID BEN-GURION,
Autograph Letter Signed, to Moshe Sharett, July 28, 1956, Mount Carmel, Israel. 3 pp., 4½ x 8¼ in.
“I came to recognize that your service as Foreign Minister was not for the good of the country, although I did not cease to value your talents and dedication....”
Item #24516, $4,000
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Mikhail Gorbachev in Israel: Bar Ilan University Speech on Religion, Perestroika, Creative Genius & Forces of Annihilation
MIKHAIL GORBACHEV,
Typed Document Signed, Speech Delivered at Bar-Ilan University in Ramat Gan, Israel, June 16, 1992, signed “M Gorbachev” in blue ink at top of first page and dated “16 vi 92.” 6 pp., 8⅝ x 11⅛ in.
“Scientific successes in the 20th century made for an unprecedented upsurge of the creative force of human genius… Yet, at the same time, they unleashed unheard-of forces of annihilation, of subjugation of many by man, of destruction of the environment. …”
“The idea of perestroika was to free society from totalitarianism, arbitrariness, coercion and violence, to give people freedom, while at the same time bringing about a change in international relations.”
Item #24764, $2,800
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Ben-Gurion ALS in English Admits He Can’t Find a Drawing of Proposed Statue of Peace
DAVID BEN-GURION,
Autograph Letter Signed, to Belle Gerald, December 1, 1964, Tel-Aviv. 1 p., 5 x 8½ in. on his lined pad, perforated at the right.
Item #24890.01, $1,500
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Before Declaring Israel’s Independence, Ben-Gurion Counters American Backpedaling and Pushes Start of Temporary Government
DAVID BEN-GURION,
Autograph Letter Signed, “D. Ben-Gurion” to Rabbi Yehuda Leib Fishman. March 23, 1948, [Israel]. In Hebrew, one page on The Jewish Agency for Palestine stationery. 8.5 x 11 in.
In 1947, as the British mandate over Palestine (established by the League of Nations in 1922) was about to expire, the United Nations called for partition of Palestine into separate Jewish and Arab states. Jewish leaders accepted the plan, but Arab leaders announced that they would oppose its implementation by force. President Harry Truman had endorsed partition despite opposition within his administration. On March 19, 1948, the U.S. shockingly reversed its position supporting partition; instead it called for a temporary United Nations trusteeship.
David Ben-Gurion, as head of the Jewish Agency, masterfully worked to contain the damage. Less than two months after writing this letter, Ben-Gurion and the recipient of this letter, Rabbi Judah Leib Fishman (Maiman), both would help draft and sign Israel’s Declaration of Independence.
Item #24454, $12,500
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Theodor Herzl Supports Yiddish Version of His Zionist Newspaper Die Welt
THEODOR HERZL,
Typed Letter Signed, on the need to support the Yiddish version of the Zionist Paper Die Welt. One page, in German, to his “colleagues” of the Zionist movement. Countersigned by Oskar Marmorek, the secretary of the Actions Committee. March 3, 1901, Vienna.
“You understand that the Yiddish edition of the World arose from the need to reach those social strata that were not reached by the German World. It was absolutely necessary to create a periodical which would in a reliable and faithful manner report on Zionist events and the Zionist requirements.”
Though his newspaper Die Welt linked together supporters across three continents. Herzl recognized that, for his vision of a Jewish homeland to become a reality, Western and Eastern Jews would need to join forces, as would the literati and the Yiddish-speaking man-in-the-street. This letter supports Di Velt, the short-lived Yiddish edition launched in 1900, one of Herzl’s attempts to bridge class, cultural and linguistic gaps.
Item #24453, $6,800
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The Building Blocks of Albert Einstein’s Creative Mind
[ALBERT EINSTEIN],
Ephemera. Set of Anker-Steinbaukasten children’s building blocks by F. Ad. Richter & Cie., Rudolstadt, [Germany], c.1880s. Approximately 160 composite quartz sand, chalk, and linseed oil blocks in red, limestone and slate gray, in various sizes and shapes, together with three or more sets of building plans, all contained in two wooden boxes with printed Anker-Steinbaukasten labels.
A unique and important artifact of his childhood.
Item #24284, $180,000
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Ben Gurion Re-examines Biblical Quote on “the Slave and the Handmaiden”: “After you... challenged the point about the equality of the slave and the handmaiden, I reread the chapter...”
DAVID BEN GURION,
Autograph Letter Signed, to Haim Gvaryahu, April 8, 1965. 1 p. 4¾ x 8½ in. In Hebrew. Gvaryahu was chairman of the World Jewish Bible Society.
Item #22355, $1,800
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Golda Meir Invites an American Semiconductor Pioneer to an Israeli Economic Conference
GOLDA MEIR,
Typed Letter Signed as Prime Minister, to Albert Soffa. Jerusalem, May 29, 1969. 2 pp. 8½ x 11 in. On Israeli Prime Minister letterhead.
Item #23283, $2,800
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Ben-Gurion Writes to Save His Nascent University in the Negev
DAVID BEN-GURION,
Autograph Letter Signed, to Avraham Zvion, December 26, 1969. 2 pp. in Hebrew, on off-white faintly-lined sheets 4⅞ x 8⅜ in.
Item #21223, $2,400
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Announcing the UN Resolution to Establish a Jewish State in Israel
[ISRAELI INDEPENDENCE],
Broadside. November 29, 1947. 1 p. 27.5 x 39.5 in.
To the Workers of Israel, celebrating the historic decision of the United Nations General Assembly authorizing the establishment of a Jewish state in the land of Israel.
Item #21546, $4,800
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Ben-Gurion Calls for a Jerusalem Home for the Bible Society: “every spiritual idea, for it to exist and exert influence, needs a physical structure, too, a central home…”
DAVID BEN-GURION,
Letter Signed to Menasche Elissar. 17 Kislev 5731, December 15, 1970. 1 p., 8½ x 11 in. Form letter on “The World Jewish Bible Society” letterhead. In Hebrew.
Item #20230, $2,950
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