In the heart of Izmir, Turkey, a remarkable discovery has brought new light to a nearly forgotten chapter of Jewish history. Tucked away in the old rabbinate building, the Hahamhane, a rabbinic library of nearly 2,000 volumes has been rediscovered. This rare collection preserves the intellectual and spiritual life of a once-thriving Jewish community that played a central role in the Sephardic world.

Dating back to the 17th century, the library contains religious texts, responsa literature, sermons, and books printed in Ladino using Rashi script. Among its most compelling features are the handwritten notes, dedications, and marginalia scattered throughout over 450 volumes. These personal annotations, written in Ladino and Hebrew, provide a direct link to the thoughts, voices, and lives of the rabbis and community members who once held these books in their hands.

A Chance Discovery
In 1999, educator and native of Izmir, Dina Eliezer, came to assist the local Jewish community in reviving Jewish education for children. During a tour of the city's Jewish heritage, she visited the Hahamhane and discovered a locked, deteriorating room filled with decaying books. Water damage, mould, and insects had already begun to threaten the collection.

Moved by the importance of what she had found, Dina mobilised the community and arranged for the books to be relocated to a safer location in the former Jewish hospital. Over the course of four summers, she catalogued more than 1,700 volumes, recording their origins, print locations, and contents.

Preserving a Community's Legacy
The books were salvaged from abandoned synagogues, yeshivot, and Jewish schools. They tell the story of a community that once flourished with leaders, scholars, and spiritual guides such as Rabbi Hayim Palachi, Rabbi Benveniste, and Rabbi Escapa. These rabbis helped shape the religious and intellectual life of not only Izmir but the broader Sephardic world.

The marginalia found in these books include not only scholarly notes but also signatures, dedications, ketubot (marriage contracts), announcements of leadership appointments, and invitations to community events. These artefacts make the library a rich source of genealogical and cultural research.

A Renewed Commitment
By 2004, the library had been catalogued, but shifts in community leadership and changes to the hospital space led to its decline once again. In 2024, Dina Eliezer returned to Izmir and, with the support of the Rothschild Foundation Hanadiv Europe and the Kiriati Foundation, initiated a full restoration of the collection. The books were professionally catalogued, security systems were installed, and thematic sections were created, including rabbinic texts, Ladino literature, newspapers, prayer books, and a dedicated marginalia archive.

In December 2024, the digitised collection—featuring over 630 high-quality images of annotated pages—was delivered to the National Library of Israel and made accessible through the KTIV online platform. Researchers around the world now have the opportunity to engage with the library from afar.

An Enduring Gift to the World
The Izmir Rabbinic Library stands today as a singular repository of Jewish heritage in the region. It holds books printed in cities across the Jewish world—Izmir, Istanbul, Thessaloniki, Jerusalem, Venice, Amsterdam, Livorno, Warsaw, Prague, and beyond. It reflects the broad intellectual and cultural networks that connected Sephardic communities across centuries.

Today, under the care of community leader Yudit Sevinir, the collection is protected and preserved, welcoming researchers and visitors. Dina Eliezer continues to share the story of this rediscovery in international conferences, urging scholars to explore its treasures and uncover the personal and collective stories waiting within its pages.

What began as a forgotten room has become a sacred mission. The Izmir Rabbinic Library is more than a collection of books. It is a voice from the past, speaking to the present and offering its wisdom to the future.

To support the preservation of this unique heritage or explore the library in person, please contact the Izmir Jewish Community Center.