In the Footsteps of Abraham: The Holy Land in Hand Painted Photographs - Hardcover

Hardiman, Richard

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0715638173 ISBN 13: 9780715638170

Publisher: Gerald Duckworth and Co Ltd, 2001

Synopsis

The Holy Land is unrivalled as a region combining breathtaking beauty with historical and religious significance.

Its position as the birthplace of the three major Abrahamic faiths--Christianity, Judaism, and Islam--gives it a special place in the hearts of millions. Rarely does a book come along that captures this extraordinary land in a fresh light. In the Footsteps of Abraham does just that, presenting a unique opportunity to experience the Holy Land as it was at the turn of the last century, before the region underwent the radical changes of modernization.

These vivid images evoke the Holy Land of centuries ago, as Moses or Jesus might have seen it. The photos were taken before the advent of color photography by the Matson Photo Agency, part of Jerusalem's American Colony, a community of Christian expatriates. In the 1920s, Ari Speelman, a devout Dutch Christian, commissioned the hand-coloring of 1200 photos on glass plates, a massive undertaking that sometimes involved painting with a single human hair. In this era before mass tourism, he traveled through Holland giving popular lantern slide lectures. His remarkable collection was bequeathed to the Jewish Historical Museum in Amsterdam; the photos in this book were selected from that legacy.

About this title

About the Author

Richard Hardiman holds a PhD in environmental and agricultural sciences from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where he currently teaches.

Helen Speelman is an artist and the granddaughter of Ari Speelman. She lives in Jerusalem.

Joel Cahen is the director of the Jewish Historical Museum in Amsterdam

Review

Library Journal
Looking at these 180 mesmerizing photographs is a time-transcending experience. They succeed in evoking the Holy Land of centuries ago. Only occasional images (like the stylish attire of Jewish women and children at the Wailing Wall) bring the viewer back from the poverty and daily toil associated with traditional ways of living. The photographers of the Matson Photo Agency of Jerusalem's American Colony took these pictures in the early 20th century, and Ari Speelman, a Dutch Christian enthralled with the Holy Land after visiting, ordered 1200 lantern slides (on glass plates) to be hand painted for shows throughout Holland before World War II. Authors Hardiman (Hebrew Univ. of Jerusalem) and Speelman, an artist and granddaughter of Ari Speelman, relate the engrossing story of the Christian expatriate American colony. The book focuses on landscape views of geographical areas related to biblical verses (e.g., the Jordan River and the Dead Sea) and on the people, including Muslims and Bedouins. Because it documents a part of the world to which people of different faiths relate, this is recommended for all public libraries, to be shelved in the religion, travel, or photography sections.

Edition details

• Publisher: Gerald Duckworth and Co Ltd
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 0715638173
• ISBN 13: 9780715638170
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 384