Ceremonies et coutumes religieuses de tous les peuples du monde, by Bernard Picart. Five out of nine volumes. Amsterdam: J. F. Bernard, 1723–1737. French.

Five volumes of the monumental work "Religious Ceremonies and Customs of All the Peoples of the World", compiled and edited by the author and printer Jean Frédéric Bernard, and illustrated by the great 18th century engraver, Bernard Picart (as Jean Frédéric Bernard chose to remain anonymous, the work was printed under Picart's name only).
The present incomplete set includes the first volume, dedicated to the history and customs of the Jews and the Roman Catholics, comprising important essays on various branches of Judaism and Jewish communities: Orthodox Jews, Ashkenazi and "Portuguese" (Sephardic) Jews, Samaritans, Karaites, Sadducees, Pharisees, Chinese Jews, and others, with several fine engravings, among them: a depiction of the dedication of the Portuguese Synagogue in Amsterdam, depictions of various Jewish customs, ceremonies and jolidays, such as the wearing of phylacteries, Bedikat Chametz, the Passover Seder, Sukkot, the Marriage ceremony, Circumcision, Pidyon HaBen, Simchat Torah, various ceremonial utensils, and the ceremonies of the Catholics.
The remaining four volumes are dedicated to the customs of the Anglicans, Quakers, and Anabaptist Christians (vol. IV, 1736); the customs of the Muslims (vol. V, 1737); the customs of the people of the West Indies (vol. VI, second printing of 1723); and the customs of the people of China, Japan, and Persia (vol. VII, 1728). These volumes contain dozens of engraved plates, in–text engravings and illustrated initials. Overall, the five volumes in the present lot contain more than 150 engraved plates (many of them double–spread). One plate missing from vol. IV.

5 Vols. Number of pages varies, 44 cm. Leather bindings, with blemishes and wear.

Exhibition:
• Only on paper: Six Centuries of Judaica from the Gross Family Collection, CD, 2005.
Provenance: The Gross Family Collection, Tel Aviv, NHB.396.