Judaica in the Gelman Library

Judaica in the General Collection

All areas of Judaic Studies, including Hebrew and Yiddish literature, are represented in the general holdings of the Gelman Library, accessible in the open stacks. Guides are available for the library’s resources in Judaic Studies, in Holocaust Studies, and in Middle East Studies.

Judaica in the Special Collections Research Center  

Aside from the Kiev Collection, the Special Collections Research Center holds a number of rare book, maps, and archival collections relevant to Judaic studies or allied fields.  

Washington-related Judaica Collections

A number of archival collections document the Jewish experience in the Washington, DC, metropolitan area. These include several organizational archives, namely:

• Jewish Community Council of Greater Washington records
• Jewish Funeral Practices Committee of Greater Washington records

Personal Papers

The SCRC holds the personal papers of a number of individuals significant in Jewish literature or culture, or active in public or political life, especially in the Washington area. Among these are the:

• Dr. Ari Kiev Papers
• Murray Frank Papers
• Dan Nimrod Papers
• William R. Perl Papers
• Faye Moskowitz Papers
• Trude B. Feldman Papers

Cartography of the Holy Land

The Center holds several collections relevant to Biblical studies, particularly the cartography and art of the Holy Land. These include:

• The Samuel Halperin and Henry Epstein Collection of Maps of the Holy Land 1590-1850
• The Samuel Halperin Collection of Lithographs of the Holy Land composed mainly of lithographs from the 1830s-1840s by artists David Roberts, J.M.W. Turner et al.
• The Robert King and Deena Barlev Holy Land Stereotype Cards Collection, composed of stereotypic images dating from 1896 to 1904

The Middle East Institute Rare Book Collection

In 2008 the SCRC acquired the Middle East Institute Rare Book Collection (formerly in the Washington, DC based Middle East Institute), composed of literature and scholarship relating to the Middle East, the Ottoman lands, and Central and South Asia. Along with many European travelogues to Palestine and Egypt, the collection includes the rare Spanish translation from Ladino of Moses Almosnino’s Extremos y grandezas de Constantinopla (Madrid, 1638).