A Jewish Iconography, Alfred Rubens, The Jewish Museum, London, 1954.

This is an illustrated catalogue of engravings. Before the days of photography, the only images of people and places were paintings, drawings and engravings.  This catalogue of about 1,240 engravings includes a large selection of images, and I have reproduced a few interesting ones below, mainly pages of Anglo-Jewish interest.

I have a pristine copy, bound in cloth and vellum, printed on expensive paper, from the first edition of 500 copies. My copy is uncut, which means that I have only been able to read and scan a sample of those pages that are visible. This book is a worthy work of reference if you can find a reading copy or a more modern edition.

Alfred Rubens (1903-1998) was a chartered surveyor who made his fortune in property development. However, he is known mainly as a collector of prints and drawings and as a historian. He was the long-time Chairman of the Jewish Museum, and an active member and eventually President of the Jewish Historical Society of England. His collection is now deposited in the Jewish Museum in London, which is currently homeless. This book was self-financed and based largely on his own collection.

I have previously written about his book “Anglo-Jewish Potraits”, a similar scarce limited edition, printed in 1935.