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Manasseh ben Israel
Dublin Core
Title
Manasseh ben Israel
Description
Manasseh (also Menasseh) Ben Israel (1604-1657) was the first publisher of Hebrew books in Amsterdam, setting up shop in 1626. Like Benjamin Franklin a century later, Manasseh was not only a printer, but a writer, community leader, and diplomat. Manasseh associated and communicated with a wide variety of people, including Rembrandt (who lived on Manasseh’s street and provided illustrations for one of his books), the Queen of Sweden, and Oliver Cromwell, whom he petitioned to have the Jews readmitted to England.
As a printer, Manasseh discarded the standard Venice type —Venice was the center of Hebrew printing in the 16th century-- and had his own type cast, which was destined to become dominant all over Europe, including Venice. The Brisman Collection includes a commentary on the book of Daniel (Sefer Maʻyane ha-yeshuʻah) published by his press in 1647. It was written by Isaac Abravanel, and it interprets the book of Daniel as a prophecy of the coming messiah and the end of the present age. Interestingly, Manasseh used eschatological arguments based on Daniel in his Humble Address to Cromwell three years later.
This title page does not bear Menasseh ben Israel’s name. We ascribe it to his press on the strength of the colophon. The colophon in early printed books is a holdover from the era of handwritten manuscripts, where copyists would record their names and details about their work at the end of the manuscript. The colophon reads, "by the hand of the worker in a holy occupation, David Bar Avraham De Kastro Tartas of Amsterdam." Consequently, this work is often attributed to Tartas’ press. However, Tartas didn’t have his own press until 1662, fifteen years later. In 1647, he was working for Manasseh as a compositor. It’s possible that Manasseh’s name does not appear on this book because, at this time, strictly speaking, he was not operating the press—his son was.
As a printer, Manasseh discarded the standard Venice type —Venice was the center of Hebrew printing in the 16th century-- and had his own type cast, which was destined to become dominant all over Europe, including Venice. The Brisman Collection includes a commentary on the book of Daniel (Sefer Maʻyane ha-yeshuʻah) published by his press in 1647. It was written by Isaac Abravanel, and it interprets the book of Daniel as a prophecy of the coming messiah and the end of the present age. Interestingly, Manasseh used eschatological arguments based on Daniel in his Humble Address to Cromwell three years later.
This title page does not bear Menasseh ben Israel’s name. We ascribe it to his press on the strength of the colophon. The colophon in early printed books is a holdover from the era of handwritten manuscripts, where copyists would record their names and details about their work at the end of the manuscript. The colophon reads, "by the hand of the worker in a holy occupation, David Bar Avraham De Kastro Tartas of Amsterdam." Consequently, this work is often attributed to Tartas’ press. However, Tartas didn’t have his own press until 1662, fifteen years later. In 1647, he was working for Manasseh as a compositor. It’s possible that Manasseh’s name does not appear on this book because, at this time, strictly speaking, he was not operating the press—his son was.
Source
Heller, Marvin J. "Introduction." In The Seventeenth Century Hebrew Book: An Abridged Thesaurus. Vol. 2. Leiden: Brill, 2011. xxiii-xxv.
Nadler, Steven M. Rembrandt's Jews. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2003. 104-143.
Rights
Digital Image: Washington University in Saint Louis
Identifier
IMG_6417.JPG
menassehbenisraelcolophon.JPG
menassehbenisraelcolophon.JPG
Citation
“Manasseh ben Israel,” WUSTL Digital Gateway Image Collections & Exhibitions, accessed May 8, 2024, http://omeka.wustl.edu/omeka/items/show/7017.