Welcome to the “Proof of Concept” Preview of “Maps of God” - The Ilanot Portal
On this site, we welcome you to explore the “Maps of God” Ilanot Portal in its dynamic development. This site is updated nightly to reflect any new content and features that have been implemented by our collaborating teams at the University of Haifa and the University of Göttingen.
Please note that this site was created for internal use and is open to the general public as a courtesy. The development and implementation of the feature-rich end-user site is currently underway and is expected to be completed by 2024.
“Maps of God” (MoG) is the flagship digital humanities initiative of the Ilanot Project, dedicated to the research of Jewish kabbalistic diagrams known as ilanot (“trees,” being intricately inscribed parchment scrolls dedicated to mapping the divine realm). The MoG platform presents scientific editions of the great ilanot using an innovative linked-data approach to enable scholars and laypeople to explore these fascinating artifacts for the first time.
The development of this “proof of concept” platform has been funded by the Volkswagen Foundation-funded Niedersächsisches Vorab: Research Cooperation Lower Saxony – Israel scheme. Basic research on the materials edited on this site was funded by Israel Science Foundation Personal Grant 1568/18.
Below you will find manuscripts that are in various stages of preparation at this time.
Here is provided a how-to guide for the search functions available on the portal.
For the new history of the genre, The Kabbalistic Tree by J. H. Chajes, and a special discount code click here.
Institute of Oriental Manuscripts, Ms. D 50
The manuscript contains binding fragments; also of Tosafot to tractate Ketubbot 29b–31a.
The National Library of Israel, Ms. Heb. 9788°4
Amulet scroll based on Isaac ben Michael Coppio’s two-column Ilan (cf. NLI Ms. Heb. 9790°4), produced in Jerusalem by the scribe Nissim Sajira for a client named Moses ben Malakand Kohen. ...
National Library of Israel, Jerusalem, Ms. Heb. 4° 9810
Ilan Qameʿ (amulet tree) of the PaZW type, closely resembling the Jerusalem manuscript Ms. Heb. 4° 9813 in content but executed with greater skill.
Jerusalem, National Library of Israel, Ms. Heb. 4° 9812
A Kabbalistic amulet-tree based on the PaZW model, in the style of Ms. Heb. 4° 9805 (NLI). It includes significant textual additions, especially in the lower Pa component.
Jerusalem, National Library of Israel, Ms. Heb. 4° 9804
A large kabbalistic Ilan (PaZP7 type) including a framed Z component. The scribe began with a framed Z component incorporating text from Joseph Solomon ...