Das heilige Land in Wort und Bild 48 Aquarelle von F. PERLBERG – The Holy Land in Word and Image – 48 watercolors by Friedrich Perlberg (F. Perlberg), described and explained by Prof. Josef Schmitzberger (J. Schmitzberger). Published by C. Andelfinger & Cie, Munich, 1909.
A booklet containing 48 color watercolors depicting landscapes, historical and religious sites in the Holy Land—particularly in Jerusalem, including the entrances to the Old City, the Western Wall, Absalom’s Tomb, and more. Also featured are views and sites in Tiberias, Haifa, Nazareth, Bethlehem, and additional locations. Each painting is accompanied by explanatory text on the facing page, providing historical, geographical, and cultural information about the depicted sites. The booklet includes a fold-out color map of the Land of Israel. Friedrich Perlberg (1848–1921), a Jewish native of Nuremberg, Germany, studied architecture and landscape painting at the local academy. He continued his art studies in Munich and spent the years 1868–1875 in Paris, where he became acquainted with Orientalist painters and their works. A German painter specializing in landscape and architectural watercolors, Perlberg became especially renowned for his paintings of the Middle East, and particularly of the Holy Land. In 1898, Perlberg joined the journey of Kaiser Wilhelm II to the Holy Land. During this visit, he created many of the artworks featured in this booklet. He also produced dozens of illustrations for postcard publishers, including reportage-style depictions of the imperial couple’s visit to Jerusalem. Perlberg frequently painted Jerusalem, including the Western Wall, Jaffa Gate, Damascus Gate, the Jerusalem railway station in the Valley of Rephaim, the Christian Quarter, and many Christian sites in the Old City, such as the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the Church of St. Mary on Mount Zion, the Pool of Bethesda, Bethany, and Rachel’s Tomb. He also painted extensively in other regions of the Land of Israel, including Mount Carmel and Haifa Bay, Tiberias and the Sea of Galilee, Jaffa, and more. Perlberg worked with prominent German publishers such as Andelfinger and Carl Hirsch, and some of his works were reproduced by postcard publishers in Cairo, who obtained (or possibly appropriated) the rights to print his artworks in sepia tone. These postcards became highly sought after by tourists visiting the Holy Land and were even distributed locally by travel agencies to the East, such as J. Boulthausen of Solingen, Germany, among others.
[2], 48 leaves + [1] map. Light wear to cover. High-quality glossy thick paper. Good condition.
