Antisemitic Hate Signs In Hebrew Illuminated Manuscripts From Medieval Germany

Jerusalem, Israel: Center For Jewish Art / The Hebrew University Of Jerusalem, 1999. Hardcover. VG- (ex-library w/ stamps to textblock edges, usual markings etc. light edge-wear & rubbing to corners. pgs clean. dustjacket taped to cover edges; ID label to spine; scuffs & scratches to plastic cover.). green boards. 158 pgs w/ 92 bw & color illustrations. yellow illustrated dustjacket w/ protective plastic. From a college library. Due date slip has one removal stamp. Vibrant color plates. "Rejects the widely-held theory that medieval artists distorted the human faces in Hebrew illuminated manuscripts due to anti-iconic attitudes of German Jewry. Presents the hypothesis that the illustrations were done by Christian artists under the supervision of Jewish scribes and for Jewish patrons. Concludes that artistic devices such as profile portrayal and animal features were antisemitic signs, whereby the artists expressed hatred and denigration. The animals chosen had negative connotations (e.g. asses and pigs). Another feature, closed eyes, suggested the "blindness" of the Jews. Further, human features were often distorted according to stereotypes (beaked noses) or deformed to the point of grotesque or demonic, suggesting that Jews were less than human. To the question of how the Jewish scribes and patrons overlooked such signs, responds that the "looking but not seeing phenomenon" operated in the past as it does in the present."--WorldCat.