The Coat of Arms of Wolf Eibeschütz

In July 1776, Wolf, the youngest son of Rabbi Jonathan Eibeschütz, petitioned Emperor Joseph II. He stated that he originated from Danish Schleswig, owned a ‘noble estate’, the Manor of Priesnitz in Saxony, and intended to purchase additional lands and properties in the Holy Roman Empire. On the basis of his ownership of the manor, he requested to be granted the imperial title of baron and the predicate ‘von Adlersthal’ added to his name. The emperor acquiesced and a diploma of ennoblement was produced by the Habsburg administration. However, within a year the authorities realized that the newly promoted baron had concealed the fact that he was Jewish. The handing over of the diploma was put into abeyance ‘until he publicly acknowledges his entering the Christian faith’. As he never took this step, the document was deposited first with the Austrian resident in Dresden and eventually returned to Vienna. This paper will analyse the diploma of ennoblement, focusing on kabbalistic elements of Wolf`s coat of arms. I shall argue that the coat of arms - Eibeschuetz`s own project - contains iconographic allusions to his religious and political beliefs.