SAPHIR, JACOB. Even Saphir [travel]. Part I: On the lives of Jews in Egypt and Yemen. Part II: On the lives of Jews in India, Singapore, Java, Australia and New Zealand. Two volumes bound in one

Jacob Saphir was a prominent scholar, writer, and noted emissary of the Perushim community of Jerusalem. He embarked in 1856 on a lengthy journey to the Near East and Orient. He was especially interested in the religious and cultural aspects of the Jews of Yemen and a large part of the first volume is devoted to a description of their social manners and customs. He details his trials and tribulations including the fact that during his visit to Yemen, all of his possessions, including his credentials as an emissary were stolen from him. In the second volume, Saphir presents a detailed account of the Jews of Australia and India. Of particular interest is his survey of the Bene Israel sect and of the communites of Jews in the Malabar province of Southern India