Obj. ID: 41306
Sacred and Ritual Objects Book Binding, Amsterdam, 1681
The following description was prepared by William Gross:
Such elaborate bindings made from tortoise shell with silver clasps, at least in the Jewish world of Amsterdam, are almost always found with translations of hebrew books into Spanish. These were clearly made for the Sephardic community of Amsterdam. Such luxurious creations seem to span the period from the 1660s to the 1720s in various size books, but ofter on small ones such as this present example. The silver clasps and corners are very detailed and finely done, and are sometimes marked by the silversmith. The edges of the book are usually gilded and often gauffered as well, as here. In this case the book is a prayer book published in 1681, a date that undoubtedly marks the special binding as well.