Sinai Photographed, or Contemporary Records of Israel in the Wilderness, by Charles Forster. London: Richard Bentley, 1862. English.

A study seeking to prove the veracity of the Exodus story according to numerous Nabatean inscriptions found in the Sinai Desert. The inscriptions were documented by French scholar Lottin de Laval during his voyage in the Sinai Desert and some were published in his book, Voyage dans la péninsule arabique du Sinai et l’Egypt moyenne (1855-1859). The author of the present study, Forster, focused on the inscriptions that, according to him, were written by the Israelites, and presented translations of these inscriptions that accord with the story of the Exodus as told in the Bible. Later scholars proved that Forster allowed himself much poetic license in their translation, and even drew farfetched conclusions without a sound basis.

The book contains 18 photographs of the castings that document the inscriptions (taken by photographer A. J. Brown), mounted on plates; a photographed portrait of the author; four lithographic plates of Sinai views; numerous reconstructions of inscriptions (according to castings prepared by Victor Lottin de Laval); the map of the Israelites journeys in the desert ("Transitus Israelitarum per Mare Rubrum"), after the book by Peter Goldschmidt (ca. 1711); and a facsimile of a letter received by the author from the Archbishop of Canterbury, William Howley.

One folded plate is presumably missing at the end of the volume (table with inscription).

XX, 352 pages + [1] engraves plate + [1] facsimile (letter). 34.5 cm. Good-fair condition. Stains. Some creases and minor blemishes to margins. Leaves and plates loose (some partly detached). Two ownership inscriptions to first page. Gilt binding, blemished and worn; tears to spine.

Provenance: The Gross Family Collection, Tel Aviv, ALE.10.

“Bilder aus dem altjüdischen Familienleben” (“Pictures from the Life of a Traditional Jewish Family”), a dozen reproductions of paintings by Moritz Oppenheim. Frankfurt am Main: Heinrich Keller, [1880s?].
A dozen prints (reproductions) from a series of paintings by Moritz Oppenheim focusing on the Jewish family and its rituals: the Sabbath, the bar mitzvah ceremony, the Jewish wedding, and more. Plates mounted on paper and titled in print (in German). Kept in original portfolio bearing elegant green and gilt impression in form of ancient gate framed by apple trees and snakes, and stamped in margin: “S. Kalinan Altona.”

[12] pls., 40 cm. Good–fair condition. Stains (mostly to edges; prints themselves mostly clean). Minor blemishes. Several plates with small, marginal perforations. Abrasions and wear to portfolio.

Provenance: The Gross Family Collection, Tel Aviv, No. ALE.29.

“Meisterwerke von Maurycy Gottlieb, 1856–1879” [“Maurycy Gottlieb’s Materpieces”]. Vienna: Christoph Reisser's Söhne, 1923. German.
Portfolio containing twenty–six prints (reproductions), some in color, of paintings by Maurycy Gottlieb. Introduction by the author and critic Moriz Scheyer. Original portfolio with leather spine, and portrait of the artist on the front.
Copy No. 26 in a limited edition numbering 100 copies.

[4] f. + [26] pls. (matted), 41.5 cm. Good condition. Minor blemishes. Tears to edges of two of the mat frames (with no damage to reproductions). Abrasions and wear to portfolio.

Provenance: The Gross Family Collection, Tel Aviv, No. ALE.6.

Land Israel, twenty-five etchings by Hermann Struck, with his signature. Frankfurt am Main: J. Kauffmann, [1905?]. Copy 46/100.
The etchings are based on Struck's sketches from his first visit to Eretz Israel in 1903, and are considered a milestone in the history of Jewish depictions of the Land of Israel. In his correspondence with Struck, Martin Buber lauded these works as a pioneering portrayal of Eretz Israel from a distinctly Jewish perspective.
The twenty-five etchings were presumably produced shortly after Struck's return from his trip (some plates are dated 1903-1905), and depict: the Tower of David in Jerusalem, the Tomb of R. Meir Baal HaNes in Tiberias, the Tomb of Absalom, Rechovot, and another version of one of Struck's famous works – a Jew praying at the Western Wall.
All the etchings are matted and signed in the margins; with a printed list of the works. Copy numbered by hand on the verso of the printed leaf.

[25] etchings, size varies (matted. Passe-partouts: approx. 43 cm). Good condition. Some stains and minor defects. Handwritten inscriptions on verso of some etchings. Minor defects and tears to printed leaf, repaired. Non-original folder with leather spine; part of original wrapper pasted on front board (illustration and title).

See:

• Briefwechsel – Martin Buber. Bialik Institute, 1982-1990. Vol. I, p.89. (Hebrew).
• Hermann Struck – 1876-1944, Exhibition Catalogue, Open Museum, Tefen Industrial Park, 2007. P. 95. (Hebrew).

Provenance: The Gross Family Collection, Tel Aviv, ALE.18.

Illustrations for the Passover Haggadah, 26 etchings by Joseph Budko, contained in the original portfolio. Berlin-Vienna: R. Löwit, [1921?].
Portfolio edition of Budko's Haggadah illustrations; 26 etchings, signed by the artists, and matted, with a colophon leaf (numbered and signed by Budko). The etchings are contained in the original portfolio; the portfolio's cover features the inscription "Haggadah Shel Pesach" (Hebrew), in hand-cut parchment letters.
The present copy is numbered 12/15 in the colophon (the number 15 was erased, and the number 32 was added in pen; Budko's signature appears near the corrected number).

26 plates. Size varies. Good condition. Portfolio: 32.5 cm. Stains and minor blemishes.

Provenance: The Gross Family Collection, Tel Aviv, ALE.38.