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Gift puts Jerusalem library on 'international Shakespeare map'

Priceless fragment of Shakespeare's First Folio, dating from 1623, is gifted to the National Library of Israel

November 24, 2022 15:55
antony cleopatra
3 min read

The National Library of Israel has been given a priceless fragment of William Shakespeare’s First Folio, dating from 1623, as part of an extraordinary donation of historic manuscripts.

The eight-book gift puts the Jerusalem library “on the international map in terms of its Shakespeare holdings”, said Dr Stefan Litt, curator of its Humanities Collection.

Three of the donated books are first or early editions of works by Shakespeare. One is the first appearance of his play Antony and Cleopatra, originally performed in 1607, and included — seven years after Shakespeare’s death — in the first print edition of his work, known as the First Folio.

There are thought to have been around 750 First Folios printed, of which 233 are known to survive worldwide.