Hebrew Manuscripts: Journeys of the Written Word - an exhibition in the Corona pandemic year

The Hebrew Manuscripts Journeys of the Written Word exhibition was scheduled to open at the British Library in March 2020. This beautifully designed, and stimulating exhibition brought together 44 objects including 39 manuscripts from the outstanding, internationally renowned British Library’s Hebrew collection. One of its key messages was to show how written culture has been one of the most important bonds connecting Jewish communities all around the world, and how Jewish diasporic writings, took inspiration from and interacted with local cultures shaping local stories.

Unfortunately, due to the onset of the Coronavirus pandemic and the national lockdowns that followed, the exhibition had to be postponed opening in fits and starts throughout the pandemic year. What steps were taken to overcome the harsh reality and reach out to audiences? What lessons have we learnt? In this presentation we will attempt to address these significant issues while providing a virtual display of some of the magnificent artefacts the exhibition contained.