Collection Guide
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Guide to the Eliasaf Robinson Tel Aviv Collection
M1522
M1522
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Table of contents
Description
An eclectic mix of materials relating to the history of Tel Aviv. Included are census materials, advertisements from the 1920s
and 1930s, maps and completion certificates for buildings constructed between 1935-1948, postcards, photographs, municipal
documents, land deeds, visa and employment certification requests, flyers and publicity for cultural events, movie handbills
before 1948, and business ads.
Background
Eliasaf Robinson, a native of the city of Tel Aviv, began to gather the materials relating to Tel Aviv in the 1960s, when
he was still a teenager. He belongs to the fourth generation in a family dynasty of booksellers and is the most prominent
antiquarian book dealer in Israel. The Jewish settlement that became the city of Tel Aviv was established in 1909. Almost
everything in this collection dates from before 1948, the year that the State of Israel proclaimed its independence. The collection
documents a vast range of private and public activity in Tel Aviv during its first four decades. Above all, the materials
in the collection demonstrate the effectiveness of one of the twentieth century?s boldest and most effective acts of social
engineering: the revival and enforced use of the Hebrew language. The modern, largely secular, urban Hebrew culture that emerged
there during the 1920s and 1930s is the basis of the Israeli culture of today. The photographs, postcards, maps, architectural
plans, and construction permits in this collection also document the growth of the "White City" of Tel Aviv, which in March
2003 UNESCO proclaimed a World Heritage Centre. This recognition was based on the city's "synthesis of outstanding significance
of the various trends of the Modern Movement in architecture and town planning in the early part of the 20th century."
Extent
34.5 Linear feet
Restrictions
Property rights reside with the repository. Literary rights reside with the creators of the documents or their heirs. To obtain
permission to publish or reproduce, please contact the Public Services Librarian of the Dept. of Special Collections.
Availability
Collection is open for research; materials must be requested at least 36 hours in advance of intended use.