[Corfu] Caimi, M., editor.

O ISRAÊLITÊS CHRONOGRÁPHOS: MÊNIAÍON PERIODIKÓN KOINONIKON KAI PHILOLOGIKON. ÉTOS A' [PROTON VOL I], AR./NR 4 (20 OKT 1899), AR./NR 7 (31 DEC 1899), AR./NR 9 (26 MARCH 1900), AR./NR 12 (22 JUNE 1900) [4 ISSUES TOTAL FROM VOL I] Ο ΙΣΡΑΗΛΙΤΗΣ ΧΡΟΝΟΓΡΑΦΟΣ ΜΗΝΙΑΙΟΝ ΠΕΡΙΟΔΙΚΟΝ

En Kerkyra: Ech tou typographeiou "O Korae¯s" I. Nachamoule, 1899-1900. Item #42189

1st edition. Original paper wrappers, as published, individual issues not bound together. Monthly. 30 cm. Most issues number 8 pages each; some are longer or shorter. In modern Greek with very occasional Hebrew. Rare Corfu-Jewish monthly. Richard Gottheil and the editor, M. Caimi, note in their 1905 Jewish Encyclopedia essay on the Jews of Corfu that “in 1899 the Greek monthly ‘Israelite Chronographos’ was established by M. Caïmi. The purpose of this periodical was to acquaint the Christian population with Judaism and the legitimate aspirations of the Jews and to create a rallying-point for the Greek Jews.” Coming just 2 years after the first Zionist Congress in Basle in 1897, this clarion call for Jewish aspirations in Corfu (and Greece) can be seen in the context of the ongoing fights for full Jewish emancipation. In the 13th Century, “Jewish traveler Benjamin de Tudela encountered a lone Jew on Corfu. Three centuries later, however, Jews had become so numerous here that the Venetians, then in control of this much-coveted, strategically important Adriatic island, had them confined to ghettos….The expulsion of Jews from Spain, however, led Sephardic colonies to to settle on Corfu or on the six other Ionian Islands. Thanks to prevailing revolutionary ideals, French domination from 1807 to 1815 offered Corfu’s Jews equal rights….When Corfu and the Ionian Islands were placed under England’s protection following the Congress of Vienna, the fate of the 4000 Jews here rapidly worsened, due to a series of discriminatory measures including the suppression of their right to vote. The islands’ reattachment to Greece in 1864 meant a return to civil equality for the Jews, but also recurrent flare-ups of anti-Semitism. In 1891, a pogrom broke out after accusations of ritualistic crimes. An exodus of Jewish families ensued, including that of Albert Cohen, one of the most important Sephardic writers of the twentieth century. On the eve of the Second World War, the Jewish community of Corfu consisted of only 2000 members. According to historian Mark Mazower, however, the Wehrmacht territorial commander made several attempts to stop their deportation, an extremely rare occurrence. On 9 June 1944, the order was finally given to deport them….Only about sixty Jews remain in Corfu today” (JGuideEurope, 2021). SUBJECT(S): Jews -- Greece -- Corfu Island -- Periodicals. -- 19th century. Jewish periodicals. Greek periodicals. OCLC: 1056245244. OCLC lists only 2 holdings anywhere (JTSA & UMich). Turn of the Century newsprint is somewhat fragile, and there is some edgewear with loss, but these issues remain mostly solid and very usable. Substantial toning and edgewear, Fair to Good- Condition overall. Very Rare. (SEF-57-3-+).

Price: $400.00