## *‘AS PERFECT, AS IF CAST IN GOLD’**Aspects of manuscript culture and Hebrew printing in Amsterdam in the 17th century*This presentation will take you on a tour through the beautiful manuscripts and printed books held in Amsterdam’s Ets Haim library.At the end of the 16th century, the first conversos from the Iberian Peninsula arrived in Amsterdam. Their desire to connect to the Jewish tradition was strong and developing a Jewish identity was essential. As well as building a synagogue, in 1616 a school and a library were established. Over time, both were called Ets Haim.The congregational school committed many books to be printed by the school. These survive in the Ets Haim library collection. Not only do those books shed light on the history of the Jews that came to Amsterdam, but they also provide an interesting insight into printing and manuscript culture in Amsterdam. How did Hebrew printing in Amsterdam begin? What challenges did the printers face? What was the power of the written word? Why were still so many manuscripts produced in the 17th century?***Heide Warncke*** was born in Hamburg and studied Semitic Languages at the University of Amsterdam. In 2012 she started working at the library Ets Haim – Livraria Montezinos in Amsterdam and was appointed Curator of Ets Haim in 2016. Heide is currently writing a dissertation with the title: ‘The Amsterdam Hebrew Printing industry and the impact of intellectual, economic and religious developments on Hebrew printing’.Join us on Sunday 21 January 2024, at 11am in LA, 2pm in NYC, 7pm in London, 8pm in Paris/Amsterdam, 9pm in Jerusalem, and 6am the next morning in Sydney. Patrons are invited to join us live on Zoom. Everyone else is welcome to join us on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/SephardicGenealogyAndHistory (and please remember to subscribe to the channel).**Can you Volunteer or Donate?**The Sephardic Genealogical Society is looking for volunteers. If you have skills and time to spare, please complete our questionnaire. We are particularly looking for people with video editing, fundraising, and web design experience.https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1aFsubxSY_PtauwOJzlayxBmLTKjXL8kTzz50jmmRiHA/viewform?edit_requested=trueWe rely on the support of our patrons. If you can support our work by donating as little as $5/month, please visit our Patreon page. We have a number of projects that require more substantial support. Please let us know if you can help.https://www.patreon.com/sephardi**Join our new WhatsApp channel**We have set up a WhatsApp channel to better help communication with supporters. If you have WhatsApp, please follow the channel.https://www.whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaHxAjhJ93wTMhWkTF0i*Best wishes**Ton and David**Sephardic World*