Although the Leo Baeck Institute’s (LBI) Library of 80,000 books and 1,600 periodicals makes it the most comprehensive repository for German-Jewish history and culture, there are several unique collections that deserve distinguished mention. These collections are one-of-a-kind, rare, or exemplify the special nature of the Leo Baeck Institute. Some of the collections are digitized, while others can be accessed in the reading room at the Center for Jewish History.
Highlights of the LBI Library
Two books from Rabbi Ignatz Israel Bick
Two books from the Frankfurt Rabbi Ignatz Israel Bick (1871-1964): In 2016 the Staats-and Universitaetsbibliothek Hamburg restituted two books as part of their search for books looted and expropriated by National Socialists among their collections (NS-Raubgutforschung). The books belonged to Rabbi Ignatz Isaac Bick and came to the Hamburg State and and University Library in…
A book from the library of Felix Halberstadt
On November 27, 2015 representatives of the State and University Library Hamburg transferred a book that was previously owned by Felix Halberstadt to the Leo Baeck Institute New York, as part of their efforts to restitute books that were looted during the Third Reich. Felix Halberstadt (1877-1942) was a sales agent for textiles in Hamburg….
Looted Books Restituted to the LBI Library
A collection of books from the library of the biochemist Carl Neuberg (1877-1956): In 2013 the Central and Regional Library of Berlin (Zentral- und Landesbibliothek Berlin, ZLB) restituted 40 volumes (representing 39 titles) from Carl Neuberg’s former library as part of their search for books looted and expropriated by Nazis (NS-Raubgutforschung) among their collections. The…
Wissenschaft des Judentums: The Freimann Collection
In 2011 the LBI Library was awarded a joint NEH/DFG grant together with the Judaica Collection at the University in Frankfurt to add books to the so-called Freimann Collection. The $180,000 grant allowed the LBI library to digitize about 1,000 books that have been identified as missing from the Frankfurt Library’s Judaica collection as reported…
The LBI Periodical Collection
Digitized German-Jewish Periodicals from the LBI Library at Internet Archives Internet Archives Portal for LBI Periodicals DigiBaeck Portal for LBI Periodicals The LBI Library has digitized over 200 periodicals from its collections. Researchers can access them via a portal at Internet Archive or through DigiBaeck, LBI’s gateway for digitized materials. The periodicals are selected for…
Reuchlin/Pfefferkorn Debate: The Rare Book Collection of Frank L. Herz
“The Rare Book Collection of Frank L. Herz” focuses on the famous Renaissance controversy between the Christian Hebraist Johannes Reuchlin, who introduced the study of Hebrew to Germany, and the anti-Jewish agitator Johannes Pfefferkorn, who was trying to lobby for the destruction of all Jewish books. Many of the 109 books were published in the…
German Exile Literature
The Wiener Library for the Study of the Holocaust and Genocide in London
The Wiener Library for the Study of the Holocaust & Genocide in London is one of the world’s leading and most extensive archives on modern Jewish history, with special emphasis on the Holocaust, Nazism, Fascism, and anti-Semitism. Founded by Alfred Wiener in 1933 to document the growing threat of Germany’s National Socialist Party, the Library…
The Library of Book Designs by George Salter (1897-1967)
This collection of about 300 books, book covers, and individual graphic designs shows the scope and development of the eclectic design talent of George Salter. George Salter is recognized as one of the most creative forces in modern book design. His innovative work, done for publishers during the Weimar Republic, produced signature pieces for some…
Ephraim Moses Lilien
The Leo Baeck Institute Library has a comprehensive collection of books designed by Ephraim Moses Lilien (1874-1925), an internationally renowned Austrian illustrator and printmaker. He is often considered as the most prominent Jewish artist to be associated with Art Noveau or Jugendstil, a new international style coming out of the European Secession movement at the…
Art and Illustrated Books
An important subset of the Leo Baeck Institute’s Rare Book Collection is a collection of illustrated books, artists’ books, and artists’ portfolios. Among them are many limited editions of 20th century artists’ portfolios and several illustrated 18th century books on Jewish customs. A 2008 Metro Grant provided funds to begin digitizing this collection. A large…
Rare Books
The Rare Book Collection of the Leo Baeck Institute (LBI) consists of ca. 3,000 volumes primarily in the field of German Judaica, dating from the earliest period of printing in the 15th century through the annihilation of European Jewry under the Third Reich. These rarities include dozens of Hebrew religious texts from the 17th-19th centuries,…
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Leo Baeck Institute receives major support from the Federal Foreign Office of the Federal Republic of Germany.