Das ostjüdische Antliz, by Arnold Zweig with Lithographs by Hermann Struck. First Edition. Rare.

Das ostjüdische Antliz, by Arnold Zweig with Lithographs by Hermann Struck. First Edition. Rare.

Das ostjüdische Antlitz, (The Face of Eastern European Jews). Berlin, 1920. First edition of 250 copies only. With dozens of lithographs by Hermann Struck. German.

The book was published in 1920 in a limited edition of 250 copies and was a great success. This is the edition before us. In 1922, a second edition of the book was published and in 1929, a third.  

Arnold Zweig [1887-1968] was a Jewish-German author. From his youth he leaned towards socialism and Zionism. In 1920, he authored this book Das ostjüdische Antlitz, together with Hermann Struck. He left Bavaria in 1923 following the coup d'etat at Hitler's wine cellar and moved to Berlin. With the rise of the Nazis in 1933, Zweig was removed from the German literary society and his books were burned. Zweig escaped Berlin in 1934, immigrated to the Land of Israel and settled in Haifa. The communist authorities of East Germany invited Zweig to return to Germany in 1948. He accepted their invitation, moving to Germany, where he became known as a writer and a favorite of the authorities. For a certain period of time, he even served as a member of the parliament. In 1958, he was awarded the Lenin Peace Prize. He passed away in Berlin.

Hermann Struck [1876-1944], was a leading Jewish artist who immigrated to Israel, contributing more than any other artist to the development of graphic art in the Land of Israel; honored stature is reserved for him in Israel's cultural life. He was born to an Orthodox family in Berlin. As a young artist he became known as one of the most important Jewish artists in Germany, this due to his well-known engraving of Theodor Herzl's portrait after being greatly impressed by him after a meeting between the two in Vienna in 1903. In 1908, he published a book entitled The Art of Etching which details the process of printing etchings. The book was a great success and turned its author to a leading name in the field of creating etchings. Among his students were Chagall, Max Liebermann, Jozef Israëls. Struck was an enthusiastic Zionist activist and in 1922 immigrated to the Land of Israel and built his house on the Carmel. Yet, he continued to visit his studio in Berlin until 1933, when he started dealing with the founding of the new 'Bezalel.' 

108 pages. 27 cm.

Very fine condition. Illustrated binding. Placed in a matching cardboard case.

It is rare to find books of this limited edition in such good condition.