Eric Chaim Kline, Bookseller

Eric Chaim Kline, Bookseller
Item #38318 Sionismo Bifronte [INSCRIBED AND SIGNED BY THE Jewish AUTHOR]. Ettore Ovazza.
Sionismo Bifronte [INSCRIBED AND SIGNED BY THE Jewish AUTHOR]
Sionismo Bifronte [INSCRIBED AND SIGNED BY THE Jewish AUTHOR]
Sionismo Bifronte [INSCRIBED AND SIGNED BY THE Jewish AUTHOR]
Sionismo Bifronte [INSCRIBED AND SIGNED BY THE Jewish AUTHOR]
Sionismo Bifronte [INSCRIBED AND SIGNED BY THE Jewish AUTHOR]
Sionismo Bifronte [INSCRIBED AND SIGNED BY THE Jewish AUTHOR]

Sionismo Bifronte [INSCRIBED AND SIGNED BY THE Jewish AUTHOR]

Roma: Pinciana, 1935 (Anno XIV). Limited First edition. Hardcover. 1/100. Octavo. 235, [5]pp. Original blue moire covered boards, with gold lettering on covers and spine. Marbled endpapers. Limitation page inscribed and signed by the author to Ferruccio Servi.* Collection of articles published in Ovazza's "La nostra Bandiera" throughout 1934, in which the author rejects Zionism and accuses Zionist Jews for bringing anti-Semitism sentiment into Italy. The text contains some of Mussolini's rhetoric and Ovazza's incessant declarations of loyalty to the regime. A committed Fascist and an anti-Zionist from the start, the author took part in the March on Rome in October 1922. In the 1930s Fascist attitudes to the Jewish population began to change. Adolf Hitler came to power in Germany and, although Benito Mussolini rejected his racist views, they influenced some leading Fascists in Italy. In 1934 several Jews were arrested in Turin for smuggling in anti-Fascist literature. Ettore Ovazza reacted by doubling his efforts to support the Fascist regime. He founded the newspaper "La nostra bandiera" (Our Flag) reminding Italians of the Jewish sacrifice for Italy in the Great War and attacking the idea that all Jews were Zionists. Taking a leading role in the Jewish community in Turin, Ovazza ensured that all the key positions were held by Fascist supporters. When Mussolini invaded Abyssinia, he immediately volunteered for service, an offer that was turned down probably due to his age (43). Despite the beginnings of anti-semitism, Ovazza was still being rewarded for his patriotism. In 1935 he was honored for his contribution to the colony of Libya and in the following year was invited at the honour guard at the tomb of the royal family in Superga (Turin). As a Jew with a deep family connection and a privileged place in Italian society, Ettore had to make drastic decisions concerning where his loyalties were. Were they to Jewish Italians, Fascism, Italy, or to the Jews being persecuted across Europe? When anti-Fascist and Zionist Jews in Italy made their criticisms heard, Ettore quickly responded through his newspaper to assure Italians that those were the minority, and that Italian Jews were Italian first and Jewish second. In taking this position, Ettore may have truly believed that Mussolini wouldn’t deliver loyal Italians into the hands of the Nazi death machine. But in doing so he had to, either consciously or subconsciously, accept the fate of other Jews across Europe, and in doing so, endorse it in some way. His work, like many writers trying to make sense of the organized absurdity of WWII, walked a fine line between journalism and propaganda. Eventually, Mussolini adopted Hitler’s racial laws and Ettore attempted to flee Italy with his family. He and his family were caught by the SS and executed near the Swiss border. This limited first edition is one of 100 copies, of which this is No. 30. Moderate discoloration on spine and along edges. Gold lettering partly faded on covers. Some foxing on endpapers. Text in Italian. Binding in overall good, interior in very good condition. g to vg. Item #38318

* Ferruccio Servi (1879-1949) was Rabbi of Chieri from 1901 to 1902, director of the "Vessillo Israelitico" from 1904 to 1922, and curator of the "Lunari israelitici" of Turin since 1904.

Price: $450.00

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