Introduction
The history of the Jews is a phenomenon of such broad, sprawling dimensions that any attempt to capture it in the form of a book collection calls for a vision and a dedication few would attempt to claim. Ludwig Rosenberger would deny that he is either a visionary or a man of particularly strong convictions. He would probably admit he did only what he wanted to do and that he did so because he was curious about the subject–and then about only certain of its aspects. Most likely he would also add that he was fortunate in having been able to devote a part of his life to a particularly gratifying pursuit. In his quiet, unobtrusive manner, he would say little else about his forty years of collecting and the assemblage of more than twenty thousand volumes and various manuscripts. To find, to acquire, and then to become intimate with the contents of a collection of such magnitude is a feat that belies the collector's lack of pretension.
Ludwig Rosenberger's collection of Judaica is a distinctly personal creation. It was no small part of the effort that the collection was built with relatively modest means in a city remote from the centers when the quarry originated and could be found. Although greater collections have been formed in the past, these were gathered in times more auspicious for the private collector. The availability of most of the books in the Rosenberger Collection has since been swept away by time and events. His achievement is now beyond duplication.
Writings relating to the Jews have been conventionally divided into two broad, amorphous classes. Hebraica encompasses the theological and religious texts and commentaries, while Judaica takes in what is left, that is, the writings relating to the secular life of the Jews in history, literature, and practically every other compartment of human activity. Both categories are equally vast, and at some points only a thin line separates them.
Ludwig Rosenberger's collection belongs decidedly to the category of Judaica. Within this large body he has concentrated on certain areas. He has heavily emphasized Jewry in western Europe but has also covered Jews in America and even in the remote Chinese community which existed since antiquity. His collection is preoccupied with Jews and their historical relationship with modern socialism, and his treatment of Jewish emancipation in England is almost exhaustive. The works of certain Jews–Spinoza, Mendelssohn, Heine, Marx, among others–is equally impressive. From these names it should be noted that Mr. Rosenberger has included individuals who forsook their Jewish origin. The collection also contains anti-Jewish writings from early polemics to the virulent publications of German National Socialism. Such a wide, non-parochial view does credit to Mr. Rosenberger's attempt.to document the fullness of Jewish experience in its most broad, and at times distressing, aspects. In this sense, he has collected with courage and perspicacity.
From all of these elements, 126 items have been chosen for exhibition and then arranged in three sections: Pre-Emancipation, 1200-1777; The Enlightenment and Emancipation, 1656-1858; and The Modern World, 1840-1940. Inevitably the selection appears superficial and leaves regrettable omissions. Within the physical limitations of the exhibition, however, an effort has been made to acknowledge the integrity of the collection and the historical experience it represents. It is hoped that the viewer of the exhibition and the reader of this catalogue will perceive the richness of Mr. Rosenberger's collection and gain some understanding of the events, personalities, and attitudes which have accompanied the Jews' passage through history.
The text that follows describing the books and manuscripts on exhibition has been written largely by Mr. Paul Silverman, a doctoral candidate in the Department of History, and by Mr. Richard Peiser, a member of the Library's Acquisitions Department. Both were assisted by the staff of the Library's Department of Special Collections. The selection of material to be shown was made by a faculty committee representing various University faculties. Mrs. Judith Z. Cushman, of Special Collections, prepared this publication for the press and was responsible for the installation of the exhibition.
Mr. Rosenberger's collection is a noteworthy achievement created in the city of Chicago. The University Library is grateful to him for sharing his books with a larger audience.
Robert Rosenthal
Curator, Special Collections
March, 1976