The Rhode Island Jewish Herald (December, 1997)
Many of us would consider Santiago, Chile, an odd place to find one of the world's largest and most valuable private Judaica art collectors, but Jacobo Furman and his collection have resided there for more than 25 years. Just one month ago, Furman's new book, Treasures of Jewish Art, was released. "I think the time has come to share this collection," writes Furman in Treasures of Jewish Art. The enormous book (14 1/4" x 10 1/4"), a work of art in itself, contains nearly 300 Smyth-sewn gilt-edged pages which illustrate of some of the Furman collection's finest pieces. It is housed inside a unique box which is decorated with two of Furman's most valuable paintings by Gottlieb. Weighing more than six pounds, Treasures of Jewish Art is also decorated with a unique satin ribbon which allows the book to be pulled out without harming it.
Furman, and his late wife Asea (to whom the book is dedicated), began the collection in 1971 when they were given a spice box from the Israeli ambassador to Argentina, a friend of theirs. Together the couple began choosing and selecting pieces they admired from around the world. "We dedicated a great amount of time to the study of Jewish ceremonial art and decided that our collection would cover as many areas of the world as possible," writes Furman. "We always looked for excellence and for objects that conveyed a message, however unpretentious the object itself might be." The finished result was an amazing and unique collection of 136 ritual and artistic pieces of Jewish art from more than 20 countries which DIVs four centuries. The Furmans' collection contains a unique, valuable and seemingly endless list of Jewish Art Treasures such as Torah finials, breastplates, pointers, kiddush cups, ketubbah, candlesticks, lamps, menorahs, paintings and prayer books.
Treasures of Jewish Art is divided into five distinct chapters. Torah Ornaments (to which nearly one third of the Furman collection is devoted), The Sabbath, Festivals, Life Cycle and Paintings. The collector weaves interesting facts about Jewish history into the art of collecting. Each section includes a descriptive and entertaining introductory essay and documentation about each object written by the collector. "The artifacts in this collection, used in synagogues and omes, are silent witnesses to times of happiness and of distress, of victory and of adversity," writes Furman. "Most important, they convey a significant message of humanism in the history of a people."
The foreword, introductory essays and additional text are written by Bezalel Narkiss (Hebrew University, Jerusalem), Grace Cohen Grossman and Shalom Sabar (Hebrew University, Jerusalem). The well-researched collector begins his book with several detailed essays about Jewish Art and its origins. Furman explains how and why Jewish ceremonial art came about. "Was it a commissioned piece? Does the piece have any characteristics that make it particularly rare? Is its subsequent history known? Has the object ever appeared in a publication, or was it cited in a scholarly article? The dedicated collector seeks to answer these and other questions," writes Grossman in an introductory essay entitled, "Collecting is a Quest." Grossman's questions are answered in depth by Furman, who researched not only the pieces but the periods and countries of origin surrounding them. Furman is an art collector and historian. His book is complete with detailed "Notes," "Bibliography," and "Index" sections, which offer a wealth of interesting facts and publications in and of themselves.
Furman states that the first public exhibit of Jewish ceremonial art took place in 1878 at the Palais de Trocadero in Paris, France. The exhibit displayed 82 items from the collection of Isaac Strauss of Strasbourg. "The exhibition of the Strauss Collection marked a milestone in Jewish cultural life," writes Furman. With the development of the Enlightenment in Europe new paths opened for Jewish museums, libraries and historical organizations. From then until the time of the Second World War, collecting Jewish art was popular for wealthier European families. "During the Holocaust, many of the collections formed in Europe were destroyed or lost," writes Grossman. "After the war, there was an attempt to locate and redistribute heirless Jewish ceremonial objects. Through the efforts of the Jewish Cultural Reconstruction, approximately ten thousand ceremonial objects and a half a million books were redistributed to Jewish Communities in Israel, Europe, the United States, and Latin America." Grossman also adds that the reunification of Germany and the fall of communism in the Soviet Union have brought many lost collections of Jewish art to light.