Although I live in somewhat of a disconnect from my cultural heritage, my travels sometimes offer me the opportunity to reconnect. New York City, with its large Jewish population, has quite a few options for that to happen. Meeting my parents in New York last Christmas we were walking around the upper east side to visit a few arts museums and it turned out it’s an area with an abundance of Kosher restaurants and Jewish Temples. Also in the upper east side is the Jewish Museum of New York, arguably the largest of the Jewish museums in the states. We went in for a visit…
There’s plenty to see, covering the long history of Judaism in brief highlights. I was glad to see that the museum went beyond the typical emphasis on the Holocaust to cover less known times of the Jewish people in more detail than most museums offer. It also hosts a large art collection from well known Jewish painters and artists.
The official website writes :
The concept of the institution, whose mission has been to preserve, study and interpret Jewish cultural history through the use of authentic art and artifacts, linking both Jews and non-Jews to a rich body of values and traditions. Today, The Jewish Museum’s permanent collection, which has grown to more than 26,000 objects — paintings, sculpture, works on paper, photographs, ethnographic material, archaeological artifacts, numismatics, ceremonial objects, and broadcast media materials — is the largest and most important of its kind in the world. […] The Jewish Museum regularly presents large temporary exhibitions of an interdisciplinary nature. […] The Museum is also known for its exhibitions of fine arts interpreted in the context of social history.
For nearly a century, The Jewish Museum has illuminated the Jewish experience, both secular and religious, demonstrating the strength of Jewish identity and culture. Its unparalleled collection and unique exhibitions offer a wide range of opportunities for exploring multiple facets of the Jewish experience, past and present, and for educating current and future generations. It is a source of education, inspiration and shared human values for people of all cultures.
What’s to see?
This next one, for example, explains the structure of a text very familiar to me from my middle-school and high-school years – the Talmud, the central text of Jewish teachings. The Babylonian Talmud is written in Aramaic and I remember long days spent trying to decipher these texts and what they’re about.
More Jewish historical artifacts…
with the occasional peculiar object, like this Menurah for a Jewish holiday called Hanuka (taking place around the same time as Christmas, depending on the lunar calendar) …
A lovely collection of Torah arks from all over the world…
And finally, the largest collection of historical Jewish texts, dating back over a millennia…
If you’re interested in Jewish history and heritage, there’s probably no better place to visit in the states. As it’s on the New York City museum mile, drop in for a visit.
I’ve just returned from a visit to NYC, and it was my first time visiting this museum. Since I’ve seen my share of Torah scrolls and other Judaic artifacts in my native Israel, I headed straight to the special exhibitions, and how special they were indeed. Marc Chagall’s haunting paintings evoke such a dreamlike atmosphere, and the subversive comics of Art Spiegelman, the creator of MAUS, stretch the limits of the medium as far as they would go. This is a must-see museum for anyone interested in exploring other aspects of art. And you don’t have to be Jewish to… Read more »