Ambassador Ido Aharoni, Consul General of Israel in New York recently visited Yale and stopped by the library to view several of the recently acquired illuminated manuscripts that were in the Judaic Studies Librarian’s office. He has been a member of Israel’s Foreign Service since 1991. In the photo Judaic Librarian, Nanette Stahl, is showing Ambassador Aharoni a new purchase.

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April 9–we had the good fortune to have the noted Israeli artist and scholar, David Moss, speak at the library about his work with the aid of a magnificent slide presentation. The range of his work is most impressive. In addition to his illuminated manuscripts and his specially commissioned Passover haggadah, he designed a shtender, a high study table which was traditionally used by Talmud scholars when they studied while standing up. He also works on artistic maps that present places in Israel that are close to his heart, a glass book which contains Rabbi Nahman of Bratislav’s prayer for peace, and other imaginative and beautiful books and artifacts that relate to Jewish life and tradition. The photo shows David (on the right) with Steven D. Fraade, the Mark Tapper Professor of the History of Judaism and Chair of the Program in Judaic Studies and Nanette Stahl, Librarian for Judaic Studies.

We are happy to announce that after a long hiatus, the Yale University Library Judaica blog will begin active posting again. We’ve had some changes in the past two years, and we’re excited to share some of our new acquisitions. Please visit our website (http://www.library.yale.edu/judaica/) for access to our digitized exhibits before they are featured on the blog. In the mean time, here are some current photos of the staff:

Acquisitions Assistant Julie Cohen, Judaica Curator Nanette Stahl, and Archive Assistant Hana Rudnick

Nanette, Student Assistant Matt Russo, Julie, and Hana

The Judaica Collection’s offices and reading room underwent an extensive renovation during the Fall 2009 semester. The beautifully redesigned offices are brighter, incorporate a more efficient and spacious layout, and have been technologically updated. We invite you to stop by and see the transformation!

The Reading Room has been updated with new furniture, more shelf space, and a digital projection system.

The offices have been modernized and incorporate a new office for the curator and more spacious work stations for the Collection’s staff.