Yosef Zvi Geiger – Pair of Sukkah Decorations – Safed, Late 19th or Early 20th Century

Yosef Zvi Geiger – Pair of Sukkah Decorations – Safed, Late 19th or Early 20th Century

Pair of Sukkah decorations by R. Yosef Zvi Geiger (1870-1944). [Safed, late 19th or early 20th century].
Watercolor and gouache on paper.
Painted on round, printed paper napkins. One is inscribed "Moadim LeSimchah" and the other "Chagim UZmanim LeSasson"; a lion crouching on verdant hills is seen on both plaques.
Diameter: 32 cm. Good condition. Folding marks. Minor open tears. Minor stains.

R. Yosef Zvi Geiger (1870-1944), native of Safed. One of the most prominent public figures in Safed. He served as general secretary of Safed's "Kollel" institutions, and his home was a regular meeting place for the "gabba'im" (managers) of the various local Kollelim and congregations. The Yishuv's foremost newspapers – including "Havatzelet, " "HaLevanon, " and "HaZefirah" – regularly published his articles. He also served as a scribe for the Kollelim, and assisted illiterate members of the community by writing letters on their behalf. Geiger was renowned in Safed for being both a gifted scribe and talented painter, entrusted with producing beautifully scripted documents. Among his extant works are splendid "Mizrah" and "Shiviti" plaques, calligraphic and illustrated title pages for "donors books, " certificates for donors and greeting letters, and papercuts in the Eastern European style. His contemporaries recall the beautiful "ketubahs" (marriage documents) he produced for the city's couples, decorated with gilt lettering and floral and vegetal designs; and the artworks he created to adorn the walls of the local synagogues, including gilt-lettered plaques. Among his many special talents was his ability to inscribe micrographic texts onto grains of wheat; he could fit several verses from the Bible onto a single grain. In the (Hebrew) book of memoirs by Yosef Zvi's grandson, Benjamin Geiger, entitled "One of the Elders of Safed, " Benjamin writes that his grandfather also specialized in engraving in stone (and inscribed several headstones in Safed). Benjamin also relates that R. Yosef Zvi was a lover and champion of the Hebrew language, and in his efforts to promote the language he would put up posters with words in Hebrew on the walls of study rooms and yeshivas throughout the town, so that children would get to know these words. He personally taught the language to his children and grandchildren, ensuring they would become entirely fluent.

PLEASE NOTE: Item description was shortened in translation. For further information, please refer to Hebrew text.