Hidden treasures in the Special Collections: the Rosenberger Ephemera

 One of the most interesting ephemera collections in the Special Collection Research Center’s holdings is that of the Ludwig Rosenberger Library of Judaica. Although Rosenberger spent most of his collecting effort on acquiring non-ephemeral material, he did amass a well-sized collection of ephemera. While the collection has material related to Zionism, Albert Einstein, and Sigmund Freud, its main focus is French, German, and American anti-Semitism. Source material on the subject is anything but rare, but the singular form of the content of the collection provides a uniquely visceral, intimate look at the subject. If you are interested in accessing the collection, an inventory of the ephemera is available in Special Collections. In the meantime, here is a selection of ephemera from a few boxes of the Rosenberger collection:

Although the majority of the material related to anti-Semitism in the Rosenberger ephemera is devoted to France and Germany, Rosenberger collected some American and Mexican items. This political cartoon, first published in 1909, portrays the cycle of control of the United States, perhaps ending in Jewish domination.

“Long live France, down with the Jews”

One of many forms of anti-Semitic materials distributed in France at the turn of the century was so-called “confetti,” small pieces of paper with a message, meant to be handed out or stuck to walls in the street. This small, circular piece of confetti was probably created and distributed by supporters of Edouard Drumont, a political writer and founder of the Antisemitic League of France.

A large part of French anti-Semitic material from the 19^th and 20^th centuries, like this caricature, contain mainly economic criticisms of Jews, accusing them of greed and secretive economic exploitation. Ironically enough, many anti-Semitic writers from around the turn of the century viewed such criticisms as a departure from racism in favor of a more “realistic” or grounded critique of Jewish culture.

While the Rosenberger ephemera contains many pieces meant for the communication of an anti-Semitic message, some pieces are rather an ephemeral embodiment of anti-Semitism’s execution. The yellow piece of cloth atop the picture contains a Jewish Star of David with the French word for “Jew” written on the inside, a French version of the infamous badges the Nazis made Jews wear on their arms to identify them as such. The bottom piece, one of the oldest materials in the Rosenberger ephemera (dated to the 18^th century), is a German ticket allowing a group of Jews to stay somewhere for three days. Pieces like these reveal a unique mode of anti-Semitism once prominent in Europe, born from political authority as an obstacle to Jewish assimilation and movement.

Rosenberger didn’t just collection anti-Semitic ephemera; he also collected materials combating anti-Semitism. This broadside was one of many distributed by the Ligue Internationale contre l’Antisémitisme, one of the two major organizations in France before World War II attempting to persuade French citizens against support of Hitler and anti-Semitism.

The other major pre-WWII French organization against anti-Semitism was Le Comité de Defense de Juifs Persecutes en Allemagne (the Committee for the Defense of Persecuted Jews in Germany, or C.D.J.P.A.). Along with the International League against Antisemitism, the Committee led a nation-wide boycott against German products, as well as an anti-Nazi press campaign. This handbill showcases their main logo, a cage with a swastika-shaped snake trapped inside.