YIDDISHLAND

[Paris]: Hazan, 1999. First French Edition. Signed presentation from Silvain on the title page. Text in French. This book provides a journey into the heart of Yiddishland, a mythical and real land that has never appeared on a map of the world, but whose frontiers have forged rivers, crossed oceans and spanned continents. Although, tragically, it no longer exists, Yiddishland - a huge area that stretched from Poland to the Ukraine, Belorussia, Romania, Bessarabia, Eastern Hungary and the Baltic States - lives on through the telling imagery of the humble postcard. Gleaned from the millions preserved in attics, trunks and Jewish family archives all over the world, this remarkable collection brings to life the immutable rhythm of the shtetl. The pages are alive with rabbis, professional marriage brokers, itinerant water carriers, bright-eyed yeshivot students, porters, beggars and brilliant intellectuals, plus synagogues, hospitals, cemeteries and those sadly unavoidable scenes of suffering and persecution. These poignant, touching, and alarming images capture fleeting moments, frozen in time, and portray a civilization which might otherwise have been forgotten. Uncommon to find autographed copies. Thick small 8vo., pictorial cardboard wraps with French-fold stiff card dust jacket; 585 pages. Profusely Illustrated.. Near fine (covers nice; contents clean & tight).