Read the new post at the blog of the Genizah Research Unit about the new book volume Book and Article: Literary Snippets. Colophons Across Space and Time, ed. Geroge A. Kiraz and Sabine Schmidtke (Gorgias Press, 2023).
Category Archives: News
Online lecture by Alessandra Veronese (in German): “Jüdische Reisende des Mittelalters”, 25 October, 6:30 MEZ
The Universities of Saarland (Medieval Studies) and Graz (Medieval German Philology) are organising a lecture series on “Das Mittelmeer – mediävistische Perspektiven auf ein aktuelles Forschungsfeld” (in German) as part of their interdisciplinary colloquium Medievalia.
On 25 October, Alessandra Veronese from the University of Pisa will speak on “Jüdische Reisende des Mittelalters”, this lecture and the three following lectures are available online. The links will be posted on the websites below shortly before each lecture.
Sukkah Scuffles: Surprising Testimony From the 12th Century
The only mentions of a sukkah in the Cairo Genizah refer to communal sukkot in synagogue courtyards. A fact that caused quite a bit of trouble. New Blog Post at The Librarians, National Library of Israel.
Lecture Series (in German): “Die Vertreibung der Kölner jüdischen Gemeinde 1423/1424 im europäischen Kontext”, Universities of Cologne and Münster, online
The Universities of Cologne and Münster are hosting a lecture series on “Die Vertreibung der Kölner jüdischen Gemeinde 1423/1424 im europäischen Kontext” which will also be available online and recorded for later viewing.
The lectures take place every Tuesday from 6pm to 7:30pm CET, starting on 10 October with a lecture by Carla Meyer-Schlenkrich on the expulsion of the Jewish community of Cologne.
AJS Opportunities
Here are several AJS Programs and Fellowships for Graduate Students and Early & Mid-Career Scholars:
Continue reading AJS OpportunitiesWorld Heritage Committee inscribed the Jewish-Medieval Heritage on the World Heritage List
At its 45th session on 17 September, the UNESCO World Heritage Committee inscribed the Jewish-Medieval Heritage on the World Heritage List.
In the largely intact historic old town of Erfurt, unique architectural evidence of the important Jewish community from the period between the end of the 11th and the middle of the 14th century has been preserved. These include the Old Synagogue, one of the oldest, largest and best-preserved medieval synagogues, the mikveh, which was first built in the 12th century, and a Jewish secular building from the 12th and 13th centuries, the so-called „Stone House“.As the central objects of the Erfurt application, the architectural evidence is supplemented by a wealth of material evidence such as gravestones, manuscripts and the „Erfurt Treasure“, which is unique worldwide. In their combination, the testimonies fulfil all the elements that are necessary to express the extraordinary universal value.
The objects in their entirety provide information about Jewish community and everyday life as well as the coexistence of Jews and Christians in medieval sites – in a complexity that is not comparable to any known site. They reflect the cohabitation of Jews and Christians between coexistence, persecution and expulsion in a medieval city in Europe. The city of Erfurt sees its UNESCO application as an acknowledgement of Germany‘s special historical responsibility to recall and permanently honour Europe‘s Jewish-Christian roots. Sites that focus on Judaism and its history are under-represented on the World Heritage List, especially when it comes to European Jewry.
Shana Tova from the Board of MJSnow!
Wishing you all a fruitful and sweet 5784!

Katz Center Library Acquires Collection of Rare Manuscripts
Louis Meiselman highlights several acquisitions of the Katz Center Library’s Collection of Rare Manuscripts reaching back up into the 10th cenutry.
The Washington Haggadah and 33 other Medieval Manuscripts digitized by the Library of Congress
The Library of Congress has digitized 33 manuscipts, which you can now adore. Some of them are medieval Hebrew manuscripts.
New evidence shows how Jews thrived in York after antisemitic 1190 massacre
A trove of documents reveals how the city’s Jewish residents lived and worked alongside their Christian neighbours, mostly harmoniously, in the early 1200s.