Resolution adopted by the Central Conference of American Rabbis at Chicago ILL., July 4th, 1918, Anent the Balfour Declaration. [Chicago, 1918]. English.
Printed leaflet presenting the resolution adopted by members of the Central Conference of American Rabbis in the United States in response to the Balfour Declaration. The Central Conference expresses support for enabling Jewish immigration to Palestine, but rejects the notion of defining Palestine as the national home of the Jewish people. In the opinion of the authors, like members of all other religions, Jews must have the right to settle freely and live as equals anywhere in the world, and it is of paramount importance that this right be upheld. In their words, "Jews in America are part of the American nation. The ideal of the Jew is not the establishment of a Jewish state – not the re-assertion of Jewish nationality which has long been outgrown. We believe that our survival as a people is dependent upon the assertion and the maintenance of our historic religious role and not upon the acceptance of Palestine as a home-land of the Jewish people. The mission of the Jew is to witness to God all over the world."
[1] f. (printed on one side only), 21.5 cm. Good condition.

"Certificado Matrimonial," a ketubah document in Aramaic and Ladino, for a marriage ceremony in the "State of America." [Printed in Cuba?, ca. 1920s-1930s].
A printed ketubah (ritual marriage contract) document with a Ladino (Judaeo-Spanish) translation printed underneath the standard Aramaic text. An almost identical copy, with the place name given as "Cuba America" is kept in the library of Yeshiva University.
Approx. 33.5X48 cm. Good condition. Fold lines, minor stains and creases. Notations in pencil. Document never used.

Three decrees issued by Carlo Emanuele I di Savoia concerning Jews. Torino: Luigi Pizzamiglio Press, 1604, 1610, 1616. Italian.
Two of the decrees (from 1604 and 1610) impose a ban on harming Jews. The third decree, presumably, pertains to the settlement of conflicts in the Jewish community.
Size varies. Good-fair condition. Fold lines. Closed tears to edges and fold lines and several open tears (small). Notations. Stains and creases, especially to the 1604 decree.
Provenance: The estate of Prof. Shlomo Simonsohn.

Terminazione degli illustriss. & eccellentiss. signori Inquisitori sopra l'Università degl' Ebrei. [Venice]: Z. Antonio Pinelli Press, 1763. Italian.
The booklet lists thirty-two regulations pertaining to economy and commerce. Issued by the official institution supervising the Jewish community of Venice – Inquisitori sopra l'università degli Ebrei.
The Jewish community of Venice was of great importance to the Italian authorities since it operated the largest and most developed pawnshops in the state. After the community reached the verge of an economic collapse at the beginning of the 18th century, the supervising institution, the Inquisitori sopra l'università degli Ebrei, was established and for about a hundred years published economic regulations to ensure the existence of the community and to continue the operation of the pawnshops. The institution was dismantled after Napoleon conquered the city in 1797.
24 pp., 23.5 cm. Good condition. Minor blemishes. Paper cover, stained and slightly worn, with notation.
Provenance: The Estate of Prof. Shlomo Simonsohn.

Four broadsides with announcements and regulations for the Jew of Italy. Modena, Rovigo and Pisa, late 17th century to early 19th century. Italian and some Hebrew.
1. Grida Sopra L'appalto del Tabbacco. Modena, March 17, 1695.
The broadside announces the sale of the monopoly on tobacco trade for ten years to David Teles, David fano and Josef Nunes Franco, Signed in the plate "Gio: Galliani Coccapani".
2. Broadside issued by Domenico Balbi, the governor of Rovigo. Rovigo, October 28, 1731.
The broadside states the Jews' right to live as free citizens and warns against printing publications against Jews or mocking them in public. The penalties for violations of the law are also listed. Topped by a woodcut depicting a winged lion (the emblem of the Republic of Venice, to which Rovigo belonged).
3. Copia &c. Tratta dal Libro delle Parti dell'Universita Generale di questo Ghetto di Rovigo. Rovigo, [ca. 1761].
Large broadside. On its upper part, a regulation from August 23, 1761, designated to moderate the trade relations of the Jews of Rovigo and prevent competition by Jewish traders from outside the city, signed in print by the Rovigo community scribe Abram Meschitta. The text is followed by an approval of the regulation which was given on December 13, 1761 by Inquisitori sopra l'università degli Ebrei (the authority supervising the economic activity of the Jewish communities of the Republic of Venice).
4. " How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven" (Hebrew), a broadside with several regulations for appropriate conduct in the synagogue, issued by the leaders of the community of Pisa. Pisa, 1822.
The broadside is headlined by the Hebrew verse (Genesis: 28:17): "How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven"; additional in-text Hebrew words.
The regulations include a prohibition against idle talk during the prayer service and the reading of the Torah; prohibition against raising one's voice more than the prayer leader's; the obligation to attend the sermons; and more.
Size and condition vary.