Two notebooks – visitors' books – of the Fischer-Heilprin family of Amsterdam, with inscriptions handwritten and signed by rebbes and rabbis, including visiting cards and photographs. [Amsterdam, 1920s-1930s].
R. Avraham Fischer of Amsterdam and his wife Mrs. Kreindel daughter of R. Shmuel Heilprin, ran a free guesthouse in their home in Amsterdam, and had the merit of hosting Torah leaders who visited their city, rebbes, rabbis and public figures. Some of them left their mark in these notebooks, with handwritten and signed inscriptions, as well as with their visiting cards and photographs which were pasted on the leaves of these notebooks.
Most of the important inscriptions and signatures are concentrated in one book, which contains inscriptions to R. Avraham Fischer and his wife Mrs. Kreindel, with praises, thanks and blessings for the couple. The second notebook belonged to one of the female household members, and contains a few inscriptions.
In the first notebook: • Postcard with the portrait of R. Meir Shapiro of Lublin (founder of the Daf HaYomi and dean of the Chachmei Lublin yeshiva) – his signature on the front of the photograph: "Meir Shapiro Rabbi and dean of Piotrkow" (the portrait was published in the book Yeshivat Chachmei Lublin by R. Mandelbaum, part I, p. 140, from this photograph). Apart from his signature, R. Meir Shapiro inscribed the Daf HaYomi of that day (instead of the date): "Beitza 10". (R. Meir Shapiro was a friend of R. Shmuel Heilprin, and they were both prominent Chortkov Chassidim). • Visiting card of R. Meir Shapiro. • Inscription signed by Rebbe Yisrael Friedman of Boyan, with his photograph and visiting card. • Inscription handwritten and signed by Rebbe Shmuel Twersky of Chernobyl, with his photograph. • Inscription handwritten and signed by Rebbe Menachem Nachum Yosef Twersky of Miropol, with his photograph. • Inscription handwritten and signed by R. Yehuda Leib Fein Rabbi of Slonim, with his photograph (the inscription was inscribed on the photograph, and was later cut out and mounted alongside it in the notebook). • Inscription handwritten and signed by R. Yaakov Yona HaKohen Erlichman posek in Lodz, with his photograph and visiting card. • Inscription handwritten and signed by R. Yisrael Jungreis Rabbi of Nádudvar, with his photograph and visiting card. • Inscription handwritten and signed by R. Shimon Hirschler, Rabbi of Modern (Modra), dayan and posek in Pressburg, with his visiting card. • Inscription handwritten and signed by R. Avraham Dov Sonnenfeld of Jerusalem, with his photograph. • Postcard with the photograph of R. Yosef Chaim Sonnenfeld. • Inscription handwritten and signed by R. Moshe Blau, with his photograph and visiting card ("Moshe Blau, Manager of Agudath Yisrael Palestine Central"). • Visiting card of Dr. Wallach of Jerusalem. • Inscription handwritten and signed by R. Moshe Glickman-Porush of Jerusalem, with his photograph. • Inscription by R. Shimon HaKohen Strasser and R. Tzvi Yehuda Fettmann of Pressburg, with the photograph of the two and visiting card of the latter. • At the end of the notebook, two postcards were pasted. One with a photograph of Rebbe Yisrael of Chortkov; the second with a photograph of his father Rebbe David Moshe of Chortkov, with the inscription "Blessings for a good final sealing…". Handwritten signature on the second postcard: "Your husband (?) Shmuel Heilprin" (R. Shmuel Heilprin, father of Mrs. Kreindel Fischer, was an elder and rabbi of the Chortkov Chassidic dynasty, and later served as rabbi of the Zichron Meir neighborhood in Bnei Brak – neighborhood founded by his brother R. Yaakov Heilprin).
In the second notebook:
• Inscription by R. Binyamin Ze'ev Jacobson of Hamburg (later rabbi of Copenhagen and Stockholm), with his photograph. • Inscription by Dr. Shmuel (Leo) Deutschländer (founder and initiator of Beit Yaakov, together with Sarah Schenirer), with his photograph. • Inscription by R. Moshe Glickman Porush, with his visiting card. • Inscription by R. Moshe Blau, with his visiting card. • And other inscriptions in Hebrew, German and English.
2 notebooks. 18.5 cm. Approx. 20 inscriptions, 20 photographs and 10 visiting cards. Overall good condition, stains and wear. Several detached photographs and leaves. Damage to covers.