Beschreibung:

Silk Souvenir Centenary Programme in Honor of Sir Moses Montefiore’s One Hundredth Birthday in 1884
On Monday, 8 Marheshvan 5645 (October 27, 1884), Sir Moses Montefiore turned 100 years old. The venerable Italian-born banker, activist, and philanthropist, who had won near-universal admiration among Jews and non-Jews for his piety, munificence, and advocacy on behalf of his people, was living at East Cliff Lodge in Ramsgate, a seaside town about eighty miles from central London, at the time. To mark the centenary, celebrations were organized in Ramsgate, London, and across the Jewish world. The present lot is a silk souvenir recording the order of the honorary procession held the following day, Tuesday, October 28, in Ramsgate. A report in the London Evening Standard reads, in part:
“During the night workmen had been busy, and by the early morning the newly-incorporated town had undergone a complete transformation. Almost every street was a mass of colour. Flags of every nationality hung across the streets, and draped the houses, interspersed with appropriate mottoes. Red and gold were the prevailing colours, and the motto of the house of Montefiore, “Think and Thank,” was often repeated […] 
“Long before half-past twelve o’clock the component parts of the procession had begun to assemble on the West Cliff. The procession was of a most miscellaneous character, and included not only the municipal bodies of Ramsgate and the neighbouring towns, together with friendly societies and kindred institutions, but also, under the guise of a representation of trades, a number of advertising vans. The procession started from Royal-crescent, West Cliff, shortly before one o’clock, and thence marched through the principal streets of the town to the Southwood Cricket Ground […] 
“The procession was headed by the Ramsgate borough police, with Mr. Superintendent Bass carrying the mace which has just been presented to the town. Next in order came the colours of the old corps of Ramsgate Bombardiers and the arms of the Cinque Ports, carried by Volunteer Artillerymen; to which succeeded the Mayors of Sandwich and Margate, together with other municipal dignitaries of these places and Broadstairs, and the Mayor, Aldermen, and Councillors of the borough of Ramsgate. The procession, which extended for a mile, had for its chief features the crew of the Ramsgate life boat Bradford, in a boat fully equipped and drawn by seven horses, the local Fire Brigade, and the yellow coach in which Sir Moses Montefiore made so many of his celebrated journeys abroad before railways were known. The Foresters, Oddfellows, and other friendly societies made a good show, as did also the employes of the Railway Companies and the Kent and Sussex Labourers’ Union.”
That afternoon, a deputation from the town, including the mayor, the vicar, and one of the secretaries of the Demonstration Committee, visited Sir Moses himself to present him with an illuminated address of congratulation, which was read before him by the vicar. The text of the address appears on the reverse of the souvenir. According to the newspaper, Sir Moses was visibly affected by these words and, in trembling tones, replied: “My kind friends, it would indeed be a blessing to me if I had the strength to utter the words which are burning in my heart. I am thankful it has pleased the Almighty in His great mercy and bounty to me to allow me to attain to this great age. Bless you, my dear, dear old Ramsgate! Every boy and girl in the town is dear to me. We are all trying to enter the gate of Heaven; is that not our object in this world? Bless you all! bless you all! I cannot tell you all I feel.”
Physical Double-sided silk sheet (12 1/2 x 7 3/8 in.; 317 x 188 mm) with green border; on obverse, portrait of the honoree beneath a pediment and surrounded by flora and fauna, with Order of Procession printed below; on reverse, central dedication beneath various decorative elements. Minor, age-related discoloration; slight wear to border; on reverse, a pen mark through part of the text and a few small stains.
Literature[Nathan Marcus Adler], Service of Prayer and Thanksgiving to Be Used in All the Synagogues of the British Empire, on the Occasion of Sir Moses Montefiore, Bart., Completing His Hundredth Year. Sunday, 26th October, 5645-1884 (London: Wertheimer, Lea and Co., 1884).
Anon., “Sir Moses Montefiore,” London Evening Standard (October 29, 1884): 3.
Ruth P. Goldschmidt-Lehmann, Mosheh montefiore, 1784-1885: bibliyyogerafyah (Jerusalem: Misgav Yerushalayim, 1984), 40.
Abigail Green, Moses Montefiore: Jewish Liberator, Imperial Hero (Cambridge, MA; London: Harvard University Press, 2010), 414-419.
H. Guedalla (ed.), The Montefiore Centenary, October 26th-27th, 1884: Some Accounts of the Doings at Bevis Marks Synagogue, London, East Cliff Lodge, Ramsgate, and the Guedalla College, Jerusalem (London: Darling and Son: 1885), 30-37.
Umberto Nahon, Sir Moses Montefiore, Leghorn 1784-Ramsgate 1885: A Life in the Service of Jewry (Jerusalem: World Zionist Organization, 1985), 112-118.
James Weston, Sir Moses Montefiore: The Story of His Life (London: S. W. Partridge and Co., 1885), 89-96. Condition reportFor further information on the condition of this lot please contact sharon.mintz.consultant@sothebys.com