Library Exhibits
Current Exhibit
Sacred Words: Revealing the Earliest Hebrew Book
March 19–July 17
After 1,300 years of untold travels along the Silk Roads, the oldest Hebrew book reveals its remarkable story. In Sacred Words, guests will behold the oldest-known Hebrew book, containing Sabbath-morning prayers, liturgical poems, and the world’s oldest Haggadah, which was mysteriously written upside down. Learn about the book’s content, its origins on the Silk Roads, and the multicultural cooperation that brought it first to Museum of the Bible in Washington, DC.
The exhibit is open to the public during Library Hours, Monday through Thursday from 9:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m.
Guided Tours Now Available:
Tuesday, April 8, 5:00–6:00 p.m.
With Marcus Mordecai Schwartz, Henry R. And Miriam Ripps Schnitzer Librarian for Special Collections of the JTS Library.
Tuesday, April 22, 5:00–6:00 p.m.
With David Kraemer, Joseph J. and Dora Abbell Librarian
Tuesday, May 6, 5:00–6:00 p.m.
With Sharon Liberman Mintz, Curator of Jewish Art at the Library of The Jewish Theological Seminary.
Read about the Exhibit:
The world’s oldest Jewish book is on display in New York City (JTA)
‘An extraordinary rarity’: Exhibit of oldest Hebrew book opens at JTS library (JNS)
Group tours are available. Please contact Dr. David Kraemer, Joseph J. and Dora Abbell Librarian and Professor of Talmud and Rabbinics, for more information.
Opening Event—March 18, 2025
Previous Exhibits
Illuminating Sacred Text: Contemporary Jewish Book Artists and Their Work
Illuminating Sacred Text: Contemporary Jewish Book Artists and Their Work
Learn More
Seeing the Unseeable
Kabbalistic Imagery from The Library of the Jewish Theological Seminary
Learn More
A Sacred Space
Synagogue Architecture and Identity
Learn More
Living Yiddish in New York
NYC as a center of Yiddish culture
Learn More
The Work of Her Hands
The Art of Lynne Avadenka and the Craft of Jewish Women Printers
Learn More
The Jews of Corfu
Between the Adriatic and the Ionian
Learn More
