Art & Architecture

Skies of Parchment, Seas of Ink: Jewish Illuminated Manuscripts

    Contributions by
  • Eva Frojmovic
  • Jenna Siman Jacobs
  • Hartley Lachter
  • Shalom Sabar
  • Raymond P. Scheindlin
  • Ágnes Vető
  • Susan Vick
  • Barbara Wolff
  • Diane Wolfthal

A superbly illustrated history of five centuries of Jewish manuscripts

Hardcover

Price:
$79.00/£65.00
ISBN:
Published:
Apr 13, 2015
2015
Pages:
288
Size:
8.5 x 11 in.
Illus:
278 color illus. 11 halftones.
Buy This

The love of books in the Jewish tradition extends back over many centuries, and the ways of interpreting those books are as myriad as the traditions themselves. Skies of Parchment, Seas of Ink offers the first full survey of Jewish illuminated manuscripts, ranging from their origins in the Middle Ages to the present day. Featuring some of the most beautiful examples of Jewish art of all time—including hand-illustrated versions of the Bible, the Haggadah, the prayer book, marriage documents, and other beloved Jewish texts—the book introduces readers to the history of these manuscripts and their interpretation.

Edited by Marc Michael Epstein with contributions from leading experts, this sumptuous volume features a lively and informative text, showing how Jewish aesthetic tastes and iconography overlapped with and diverged from those of Christianity, Islam, and other traditions. Featured manuscripts were commissioned by Jews and produced by Jews and non-Jews over many centuries, and represent Eastern and Western perspectives and the views of both pietistic and liberal communities across the Diaspora, including Europe, Israel, the Middle East, and Africa.

Magnificently illustrated with pages from hundreds of manuscripts, many previously unpublished or rarely seen, Skies of Parchment, Seas of Ink offers surprising new perspectives on Jewish life, presenting the books of the People of the Book as never before.


Awards and Recognition

  • Winner of the 2015 National Jewish Book Award in Visual Arts, Jewish Book Council
  • Finalist for the 2015 National Jewish Book Award in Scholarship (Nahum M. Sarna Memorial Award), Jewish Book Council
  • Honorable Mention for the 2016 PROSE Award in Art History & Criticism, Association of American Publishers