The Sceptre of Judah
Menasseh ben Israel, rabbi, scholar, philosopher, diplomat and Hebrew printer, 1604-1657
Explore the work of Menasseh Ben Israel, rabbi, scholar, philosopher, diplomat and Hebrew printer, through books in the Cecil Roth Collection.
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In the midst of history – Menasseh ben Israel’s mission to England
Early printed witnesses to Menasseh ben Israel’s mission to England, including Christian responses.
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Apology for the honorable nation of the Jews and all the sons of Israel
Apologia por la noble nacion de los Iudios y hijos de Israel
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The Lost tribes of Israel, rediscovered in South America
Mikveh Yisra’el, Esto es, Esperança De Israel: : Obra con suma curiosidad conpuesta
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Short demurrer to the Jewes long discontinued remitter into England
William Prynne, Short demurrer to the Jewes long discontinued remitter into England:
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A loving salutation to the seed of Abraham among the Jewes
Margaret Fox, A loving salutation to the seed of Abraham among the Jewes
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Printing and Teaching Judaism
Imprints from Menasseh’s press and its Christian publishers, in Spanish, Portuguese and Hebrew (with Latin) with those of his Jewish competitors.
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Menasseh ben Israel's Liturgical Bible: Pentateuch, Five Scrolls and the Prophetic Portions (1)
Hamishah Humshe Torah: Menasseh ben Israel’s Liturgical Bible: Pentateuch, Five Scrolls and the Prophetic Portions (1)
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Menasseh ben Israel's Liturgical Bible: Pentateuch, Five Scrolls and the Prophetic Portions (2)
Hamishah Humshe Torah: Menasseh ben Israel's Liturgical Bible: Pentateuch, Five Scrolls and the Prophetic Portions (3)
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A mystical treatise on the fear of God
TheTratado del Temor Divino: A mystical treatise on the fear of God
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A Treasury of [religious] Laws which the people of Israel is obligated to know and keep
Thesouro dos dinim: que o povo de Israel, he obrigado saber, e observar: A Treasury of [religious] Laws which the people of Israel is obligated to know and keep.
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Fifty precious sermons by Amsterdam’s senior rabbi
Hamishim derushim yekarim; va-yikra et shemo Giv’at Sha’ul: Fifty precious sermons by Amsterdam’s senior rabbi
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"THEOLOGUS ET PHILOSOPHUS HEBRAEUS"
This section is devoted to Menasseh as author in the context of Jewish-Christian intellectual contacts in Holland.
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The first part of The Conciliador
Conciliador, o de la conveniencia de los Lugares de la S. Escriptura que repugnantes entre si parecen: The Conciliator (2)
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Thirty problems concerning Creation
De creatione problemata XXX: Thirty problems concerning Creation
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Three books on the resurrection of the dead (1)
De resurrectione mortuorum libri III: Three books on the resurrection of the dead (1)
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Three books on the resurrection of the dead (2)
De resurrectione mortuorum libri: Three books on the resurrection of the dead (2)
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Three books on the resurrection of the dead (3)
De resurrectione mortuorum libri: Three books on the resurrection of the dead (3)
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Portrait of the Tabernacle of Moses (1)
Retrato del tabernaculo de Moseh: Portrait of the Tabernacle of Moses
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Portrait of the Tabernacle of Moses (2)
Retrato del tabernaculo de Moseh: Portrait of the Tabernacle of Moses (2)
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Portrait of the Tabernacle of Moses (3)
Retrato del tabernaculo de Moseh: Portrait of the Tabernacle of Moses (3)
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Solomon ibn Verga (1460–1554), a refugee scholar from Portugal, wrote the Sceptre of Judah (Roth Collection 357), an account of Jewish persecutions culminating in those of the Iberian Peninsula that he himself had seen. Verga was an eyewitness of the Lisbon massacre of 1506.
The title alludes to the Book of Genesis, 49:10: “The sceptre shall not depart from Judah…” The work was a bestseller. A Yiddish translation was published in Amsterdam in 1648, and a Latin one in 1680. The title page features a different gate design by Benvenisti, with the familiar castle and lion coat of arms drawn in by hand.
