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Our Collections

Artifacts and Ephemera Collection

Stanley Abramovitch album (detail). One of several albums containing photos of Jewish communities in North Africa and Iran. Abramovitch was JDC Country Director in Iran from 1949 to 1952.

North Africa and Iran, c.1950s, photographs on paper and enamel.

The JDC Archives Artifacts and Ephemera Collection contains works ranging from posters and illuminated records to precious artwork and gifts from Jewish communities around the world. These unique treasures, more than 1,000 of which have been cataloged, offer a rich historical overview of JDC’s relief activities over the past century in 90 countries.

Given the visual and dynamic nature of these objects, the collection helps to enrich and complement the JDC Archives’ photograph and text holdings. Bureaucratic correspondence and reports come alive when partnered with this wide range of mixed-media objects that reflect the social fabric of global communities and the humanitarian response to monumental historical events.

The collection’s works span from 1917 to the present and include:

    • Works of art, from framed paintings and lithographs to prints and handicrafts
    • Religious and ceremonial objects
    • Plaques and medals
    • Albums and scrapbooks
    • Newspaper clippings
    • Correspondence and personal documents
    • Posters and advertisements
    • Architectural and cartographic materials
    • Institutional ephemera ranging from promotional items to publications
    • Staff mementos
    • Textiles
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News and Articles

Lending a Paw: Hibuki Therapy

Lending a Paw: Hibuki Therapy

Scrapbooks and Albums Rehoused

Scrapbooks and Albums Rehoused

Through the Eyes of an Artist

Through the Eyes of an Artist

Recent Acquisitions

Recent Acquisitions

The Sridei Aish: Saved from the Consuming Fire

The Sridei Aish: Saved from the Consuming Fire

The Art of Documenting JDC Assistance

The Art of Documenting JDC Assistance

JDC Archives Awarded Preservation Assistance Grant from the NEH

JDC Archives Awarded Preservation Assistance Grant from the NEH

Backdrop to Rescue

Backdrop to Rescue

Distribution of Religious Items

Distribution of Religious Items

An Illuminated Manuscript

An Illuminated Manuscript

Life in Sosúa Revealed

Life in Sosúa Revealed

A Rare Romanian Artifact in the Archives

A Rare Romanian Artifact in the Archives

A Gift from Golda

A Gift from Golda

Snapshots of a Forgotten World

Snapshots of a Forgotten World

How a Recent Grant Helped Uncover a Rare Artifact’s Provenance

How a Recent Grant Helped Uncover a Rare Artifact’s Provenance

Lending a Helping Hand

Lending a Helping Hand

Illuminating History

Illuminating History

Tunisian Treasure

Tunisian Treasure

Mr. Shamsian’s Shiviti Gift

Mr. Shamsian’s Shiviti Gift

Archives Website’s “Our Stories” Section Presents Collection Highlights in a New Way

Archives Website’s “Our Stories” Section Presents Collection Highlights in a New Way

Gertrud Glanz’s Scrapbook from Shanghai

Gertrud Glanz’s Scrapbook from Shanghai

JDC Archives Artifacts and Ephemera Collection Database now open

JDC Archives Artifacts and Ephemera Collection Database now open

JDC Archives Launches Updated Website

JDC Archives Launches Updated Website

JDC Archives Awarded Prestigious National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Grant

JDC Archives Awarded Prestigious National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Grant

Polish Yiddish Theater Posters

Polish Yiddish Theater Posters

Badges of Honor

Badges of Honor

When a Letter Becomes Art

When a Letter Becomes Art

Russian Children’s Art

Russian Children’s Art

Lighting the Way

Lighting the Way

Cultivating Artists on Cyprus: The Rutenberg Seminar

Cultivating Artists on Cyprus: The Rutenberg Seminar

Issachar Ryback’s Agro-Joint Album

Issachar Ryback’s Agro-Joint Album

Medals of Honor

Medals of Honor