Penn Libraries has received a series of Judaica donations totaling $12 million, which include funding for the world's first endowed position in Judaica digital humanities.
Judaica refers to objects relating to Jewish life. The gifts, granted by Arnold and Deanne Kaplan, include a collection of early American Judaica that highlights Jewish business life and other topics, which was first given to Penn in 2012. The Kaplans also granted funding for research fellowships and an endowment to expand the collections, Penn Libraries reported.
Most recently, Penn Libraries released a new website that offers access to over 7,000 digital copies of items from the collection free of charge, ranging from art to commercial documents. Digital copies of recent acquisitions will be made available in the coming year, and all future acquisitions will be added to the collection, Penn Libraries reported.
The Kaplans began their partnership with Penn Libraries over 10 years ago, working with Judaica Collections curator Arthur Kiron to form the Jesselson-Kaplan American Genizah Project. This website houses copies of letters to and from Isaac Leeser, a mid-19th century rabbi, and provided a model for how to make texts accessible to scholars over the internet.
Constantia Constantinou, H. Carton Rogers III Vice Provost and Director of the Penn Libraries, said she was thankful for the gifts granted by the Kaplans.
“The Kaplans’ forward-thinking gifts continue an extraordinary tradition of philanthropy. Their generosity will ensure long-lasting access to a world-class collection,” Constantinou told Penn Libraries.
Correction: A previous version of the article incorrectly stated that the $12 million donations were made this week, when in fact they were gifted over the course of years. The DP regrets this error.
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