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Michelle Margolis Profile picture
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4 Oct, 5 tweets, 2 min read
.@gerbenzaagsma speaking at the @polinmuseum conference “What’s New, What’s Next” on “Exploring Jewish History in the Digital Age.”
Shoutout to Judaica Librarianship articles (@JewishLibraries) from the early ‘90s that were already dealing w/#dhjewish, in this case regarding a database by @lbinyc of Jewish Archives in Germany.
And librarian Heidi Lerner’s Perspectives in Technology for @jewish_studies
And also, thinking about the cjh-a2i conference (Access to Integration), kernels of which still remain on this platform via a search of the words above. (Worth a look!)
Really important question to ask: What is being digitized? What can (and critically, cannot) be studying digitally?

The majority of collections are NOT digitized.

How are digitization priorities assessed? Preservation; access; demand; politics; copyright; funding and and and
SO it’s critical to understand that you canNOT ignore the non-digitized corpus.

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More from @hchesner

Michelle Margolis Profile picture
21 Jul
Let me tell you the story of a book. Akedat Yitzhak was written by Isaac ben Moses Arama, who died in 1494. He lived in various places in Spain until the Jews were expelled in 1492, at which point he fled to Naples.
Naples is not far from Salonika, where the first edition of his commentary on the Bible was printed in 1522.

The call number for the copy @columbialib is B893.1 Ar12
clio.columbia.edu/catalog/113780…

It is a worn copy, showing many signs of use (binding both volumes in one made it solid)
The opening flyleaf looks like it was owned by lots of people, but that's a bit misleading. All but the top and bottom inscriptions were written by Shelomoh (bar?) Shim'on, who bought it from Moshe (can't decipher the surname).

Note the phrase "lest someone come from the shuk"
Read 13 tweets
Michelle Margolis Profile picture
21 Jul
Love this idea. Maybe...
I mean, the @CULHebrewMss bot basically does this, but with less context.

Should I tweet an ms a (work)day from the @columbialib collection?
N.B. A lot of it may be RTs of things I’ve said over the past ten years or so, since apparently I talk a lot about the mss here :)
Read 4 tweets
Michelle Margolis Profile picture
20 Jul
A lot of really good nuance here.

“If the drive to tell stories comes from defending rather than celebrating, the stories will not be compelling.”
As someone who celebrates my own Orthodoxy, I think it’s critical to listen to those who left (that doesn’t mean accept every word uncritically when there is clear sensationalism and lying, as with JH, but allow yourself to hear and learn when it’s sincere, as this piece is).
There are so many factors that impact people’s lives - I’ve experienced some of the dark side, but I am grateful to have mostly had incredible people in my life, which makes a huge difference in how I live and practice.
Read 6 tweets
Michelle Margolis Profile picture
8 Apr 20
Haggadot from the 10th-18th centuries:
First, a disclaimer - there is no way to do a comprehensive overview of haggadot. They were probably the most reproduced Jewish text. Some are super simple, meant to last for a day or two, while others are incredibly lavish.
The earliest haggadot were found in the Cairo Geniza. This one is known as Halper 211, and is @upennlib @katzcenterupenn. It's interesting for many because of the third question: "...on this night, we eat only roasted," following the Palestinian Talmud rather than Babylonian Image
I personally think it's interesting because it was owned by David Amram, of history of the printed book fame (his book, though well out of date over 100 years later, is still the only text on some aspects of the history of the printed Jewish book).
Read 50 tweets
Michelle Margolis Profile picture
31 Dec 19
To celebrate the completion of the Shas cycle, I’m going to (mostly re)tweet the many examples of Talmudim @Columbialib.

I’ll start with one of my favorites, which doesn’t include Rashi and Tosafot because... 🥁 ...they weren't born yet. (Dated to roughly 10th century)
@columbialib This one doesn't have commentaries either, and is known as the "Columbia Talmud" to Talmud scholars. It is an early Yemenite version, with significant differences from the printed text. We have Betsah, Pesahim, Megillah, Moe'd Katan, and Zevahim in 2 v.

A quick note on this: I had a BY high school come to visit a couple of years ago, & showed them this manuscript. A girl came over afterward, and thanked me for showing her this volume: "I'm Yemenite, and I've never heard my background being described as important in this way."😭
Read 22 tweets
Michelle Margolis Profile picture
7 Oct 19
Sometimes you see an acquisition that stops you in your tracks.

In this case, my colleague Jane Siegel, who acquires artists' books for the collection, told me about a new book she just bought for @Columbialib #rbml
The book is made of glass, and housed in a soft, protective case. It is called "they did not know that the books were already in our head," by Becky Slemmens.
I can say nothing more than to quote the artist's statement: "I created a book of glass pages. I chose to make a book that cannot be burned and demands respect in handling. The material also references Kristallnacht, "the night of broken glass," occurring on September 9-10, 1938.
Read 6 tweets

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