The Wandering Jew in Israel, 1952-1955

About this event

A free Shorstein Center public lecture with Professor Yair Mintzker of Princeton University. About the Lecture: The origin of the expression “Wandering Jew” is a mysterious pamphlet published anonymously in German in the year 1602. It describes the story of a Jew named Ahasversus, who lived at the time of the Second Temple and was cursed by Jesus to eternal wanderings after refusing to help him as he was led to Calvary. For more than four hundred years, many otherwise reliable witnesses have claimed to have met the Wandering Jew in person. Though appearing in different times and places, he is always described in the same exact way. The lecture recounts one of the most recent apparitions of the Wandering Jew: in Israel of the early 1950s. Speaker Bio: Yair Mintzker is Professor of European History at Princeton University. He is a specialist in the history of early modern and modern Germany, and the author or editor of five books and many articles in the field. His latest monograph, I, Wandering Jew (Princeton UP, 2026), combines history and memoir to retell the legend of the Wandering Jew across five centuries. Mintzker’s previous book, The Many Deaths of Jew Süss (2017), won the National Jewish Book Award in History and was chosen by the Financial Times as one of the best books of 2017. Additional Event Information: • This event will be held in person at Pugh Hall Ocora and also streamed live at THIS LINK. • The event is free to attend and open to all. • Light refreshments will be served beginning at 5:30 PM Parking Information: • Parking is available in the Murphree Lot. For directions and a map, click here: https://clas.ufl.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/08/Shorstein-Event-Murphree-Lot-Map.pdf. • You may drop off guests directly in front of Pugh Hall before proceeding to parking. Additional parking may be found in and around campus - please make sure you comply with posting parking regulations. Questions: email [email protected]