Bidspirit auction | Bezalel, Photo-Montage Postcard “To the

Bezalel, Photo-Montage Postcard “To the Volunteers of the Nation” – The Jewish Battalions – Laying of the Cornerstone of the Hebrew University, Jerusalem | Published by Ben-Dov, Jerusalem | Early 1920s - An early Eretz-Israel photo-montage postcard, designed in the Bezalel style and published by Ben‑Dov, Jerusalem. The postcard combines documentary photographs with a richly illustrated frame and Hebrew national symbols, characteristic of the visual discourse of the early 1920s. At the center of the postcard are two photographs: Left: The ceremony of laying the cornerstone of the Hebrew University in Jerusalem (1920) – a formative event in the history of Hebrew culture and academia. Right: Worshippers near the Western Wall, symbolizing historical continuity and the link between national revival and the Jewish past. The iconographic frame carries clear ideological significance: A female figure on the left, carrying sheaves of wheat on her head – an allegory of labor, abundance, agricultural renewal, and the building of the Yishuv. A soldier figure on the right, from the Jewish Battalions, bearing a flag – representing Hebrew volunteerism and the Jewish military contribution during the First World War. Right medallion: “Judea Liberated”. Left medallion: “To the Volunteers of the Nation”. Originally intended as a Rosh Hashanah (“Shana Tova”) greeting postcard, this example lacks the lower section bearing the “Shana Tova” inscription, which was either not printed or cut away. It therefore constitutes an incomplete copy / an unfinished or variant issue from the original publication. The reverse is divided in the standard format, Correspondence / Address Only, unused. Dimensions: Standard postcard size. Condition: Good to very good; stains, light abrasions, age toning, and period wear typical of early paper ephemera. The absence of the “Shana Tova” inscription is a documented and inherent feature of this item.