A letter handwritten and signed by Ephraim Deinard, addressed to "My friend the wise and enlightened rabbi the honorable… Rabbi S. Buber" [Solomon Buber]. Written on official stationery. London, [ca. late 19th century]. Hebrew.
At the beginning of the letter, Deinard writes to Buber that he is sending him two of his recently published books – "Zamir Aritzim" and "Katot B'Yisrael" and tells him about his travels around the world: "I have just left on my journey around the world, after travelling to all the countries of America… now I am passing through Europe, and I hope to reach Lemberg as well at the end of the summer, and I will be delighted to see you at least once in my lifetime".
Deinard further refers to a list of manuscripts from the library of Adolph Sutro (1830-1898 – an engineer, politician and philanthropist; 24th Mayor of San Francisco): "If you are interested in the list of manuscripts… I could send it to you. At the moment the list is in the hands of our friend the scholar rabbi Dr. Neubauer [bibliographer and writer Adolph (Avraham) Neubauer, the deputy director of the Bodleian Library]".
The letter, signed "The traveler Ephraim Deinard", was written on Deinard's official stationery. Printed on the upper part of the leaf, on the right, beside the Hebrew inscription "If I forget thee Jerusalem, let my right hand be forgotten", is an illustration of an eagle holding arrows in its left talon and an olive branch in its right talon (resembling the eagle on the Great Seal of the United States). Printed on the upper part of the leaf, on the left, is an illustration of a sailboat alongside the Hebrew inscription "the traveler Ephraim Deinard".
Ephraim Deinard (1846-1930) was a Hebrew bibliographer and writer, a collector and bookseller; one of the greatest Hebrew bibliographers of Modern history; a historian and polemicist, who was considered a fascinating, colorful figure. Deinard was born in Sasmaka (today, Valdemārpil, Latvia). From an early age he travelled around the world, studying various Jewish communities and collecting Hebrew books and manuscripts. During the 1880s he owned a bookstore in Odessa. In 1888 he immigrated to the USA. Deinard's rich collections were used to establish departments for Hebrew books in the large libraries of the USA and the catalogues of his books constituted an important base for the study of Hebrew literature and culture. Deinard authored dozens of books, including research and polemic books. He was considered a provocative writer and many of his books evoked sharp criticism.
Solomon Buber (1827-1906) was a Jewish scholar, researcher and editor, born in Lviv;
grandfather of Martin Buber.
[1] f., 27.5 cm. Good condition. Fold lines and creases. A few stains. Small tears along edges.