Submission declined on 29 April 2024 by Asilvering (talk). This submission does not appear to be written in the formal tone expected of an encyclopedia article. Entries should be written from a neutral point of view, and should refer to a range of independent, reliable, published sources. Please rewrite your submission in a more encyclopedic format. Please make sure to avoid peacock terms that promote the subject.
Where to get help
How to improve a draft
You can also browse Wikipedia:Featured articles and Wikipedia:Good articles to find examples of Wikipedia's best writing on topics similar to your proposed article. Improving your odds of a speedy review To improve your odds of a faster review, tag your draft with relevant WikiProject tags using the button below. This will let reviewers know a new draft has been submitted in their area of interest. For instance, if you wrote about a female astronomer, you would want to add the Biography, Astronomy, and Women scientists tags. Editor resources
| ![]() |
Industry | Auctioneer |
---|---|
Founded | January 1, 1996 |
Founders | Daniel E. Kestenbaum |
Headquarters | , U.S. |
Products | |
Website | www |
Kestenbaum & Company is the first auction house in the United States to specialize in antiquarian printed books and manuscripts, with a particular focus on Hebraic texts and Judaic fine and applied arts. Kestenbaum also offers periodic sales of fine kosher wines, musical instruments, and rare silver.[1]
To date, Kestenbaum has sold more than $65,000,000 worth of material.[2]
History
editKestenbaum & Company was founded in New York City by Daniel Ethan Kestenbaum (born 1962) in 1996. After chairing the rare Judaica division at London-based Bloomsbury Auctions for ten years, Kestenbaum went on to found the Jerusalem branch of Swann Galleries.
Following a series of successful auctions at Swann, Kestenbaum opened his own Auction House, Kestenbaum & Company, in 1996. The firm offered its first sale of rare Judaica on November 14th, 1996 at the Doral Park Avenue Hotel in Manhattan.[3]
Currently, Kestenbaum & Company is one of the largest niche Auction Houses in the United States, having sold over 40,000 lots at 105 auctions, totaling more than $65,000,000 in sales.[4] [5]
In 2013, Kestenbaum & Company was honored at a congressional luncheon held in the U.S. Capitol building, in celebration of Jewish American Heritage Month.[6] The event recognized the Company for its work in seeking to preserve historic Jewish material culture via auction sale.[7] United States Senator Sherrod Brown of Ohio lauded Kestenbaum for his commitment to the conservation of important Judaica. After 25 years of operating out of midtown Manhattan, Kestenbaum & Company moved to the Brooklyn Navy Yard in January 2020.[8]
Jewish Museum of Prague Restitution Incident
editIn a collaborative effort involving Kestenbaum & Company, the Jewish Museum in Prague, the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany (Claims Conference), and the World Jewish Restitution Organization (WJRO), a significant restitution endeavor was undertaken to return a rare 16th-century print to the library collections of the Jewish Museum in Prague.[9]
This effort reached its culmination during a ceremony held on Tuesday, January 16, 2018, at the Auditorium of the Education and Culture Centre of the Jewish Museum in Prague.[10]
At the heart of this commemoration was the return of a nearly 500-year-old literary work, "Mikneh Avram-Peculium Abrae," authored by Abraham de Balmes and originally printed in Venice in 1523. This unique artifact, once belonging to the Jewish Community of Prague, had been absent from the museum's archives for an extended period.[11]
Kestenbaum formally delivered the rare book to Leo Pavlat, Director of the Jewish Museum in Prague. This event marked a significant step in the ongoing efforts to recover and preserve Jewish cultural heritage.
Rare Silver
editOn December 6th, 2012, Kestenbaum & Company conducted the world’s first Jewish-related rare silver auction, which included ceremonial religious objects, decoartive Torah shields, and goblets. An 18th-century Polish parcel-gilt silver filigree spice container sold for a record $280,000, the most expensive silver piece ever sold by Kestenbaum.[12][13]
Fine Musical Instruments
editKestenbaum & Company held its Inaugural Auction of Fine Musical Instruments on October 22nd, 2018. The event garnered significant attention, with a substantial audience both within the saleroom, as well as active bidding online and via telephone.[14]
The following year, Kestenbaum more than doubled its auction sales. Highlights included Eugene Sartory's silver-mounted violin bow ($16,000), Charles Pecatte's silver-mounted violin bow, ($13,000), Albert Caressa's 1924 French violin decorated in gold leaf ($11,000), and Giuseppe Tarantino's 1922 Neapolitan violin ($8,000).[15]
Fine Wine
editOn September 22nd, 2011, Kestenbaum & Company conducted the world’s first kosher wine auction.[16] The lots, all vintage and kosher, included rare Capcanes, a Spanish wine made about 100 miles south of Barcelona; a 1.5 L Magnum of Covenant Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley Solomon Lot 70, one of only six magnums produced, and a Carmel vintage from 1976 produced in the Golan Heights.[17][18]
Notable Items
editIn more than 100 auctions, Kestenbaum & Company has sold some of the most significant Judaica to appear at auction sale, including:
- The first ever printed edition of Rashi (Rabbi Solomon Yitzchaki) on the Pentateuch, including previously unknown commentary, in 1457. Sold For $390,000[19]
- The first ever printed edition of the Mishna, one of the most celebrated of Hebrew incunables, in 1492. Sold for $300,000[20]
- German-Jewish artist Moritz Oppenheim’s paintings of traditional Jewish life in Eastern Europe, one of the first to depict Jews as equal members of society. Breaking a world record for the most expensive painting sold by Oppenheim, the lot reached a hammer price of $380,000.[21][22]
- The first ever printed edition of Abraham Ibn Ezra on the Pentateuch in 1488. Sold for $200,000[23]
- A 1721 rare parcel-gilt silver filigree spice container from Galicia. Sold for $280,000.[24]
- Isidor Kaufmann’s Portrait of a Young Jewish Bride, the most well-known of all Jewish portrait artists. Sold for $230,000.[25]
- The first ever printed edition of Maimonides's (Moses ben Maimon) commentary to Mishnah Tractate Avos in 1584. Sold for $170,000[26]
- The first ever printed edition of Maimonides’s (Moses ben Maimon) Mishneh Torah (Yad Chazakah) in 1509. Sold for $127,000[27]
- The first ever printed edition of The Tosfos Yom-Tov (Yom Tov Lipmann Heller) in 1614. Sold for $120,000.[28]
- The personal Menorah of actress Marilyn Monroe. Sold for $112,000[29]
- The first ever printed edition of the Shulchan Aruch (The Code of Jewish Law) in 1565. Sold for $155,000.[30]
- The first ever printed edition of the Tanya, the magnum opus of Chabad Chasidic thought, in 1796, sold for $96,000[31]
Noted Collections
editKestenbaum & Company has featured some of the most extensive collections of rare Judaica, including:
- The Rare Book Room of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America. The auction represented only the second time in its 100-year history that the Seminary has deaccessioned duplicates from its Library.[32]
- The Honorary Officers of the United Synagogue’s Library of the Beth Hamidrash of the Court of the British Chief Rabbinate and its Beth Din, containing a collection of Solomon Hirschel (1762-1845) writings, England’s first formally recognized Chief Rabbi. The collection sold for $1,900,000.[33]
- The Library of the late Salman Schocken, noted scholar and Judaica collector. The collection sold for $819,530.[34]
- The Elkan Nathan Adler-Wineman Family Collection, including a leaf from the famous Gutenberg Bible. The collection sold for $3,780,00.[35]
- The Autographic Collection, including the very earliest recorded autograph letter by the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Menachem Mendel Schneerson. The letter sold for for $30,000.[36]
- The Valmadonna Trust Library, in conjunction with the Public Authorities of the State of Israel. A complete reference and bibliographic of the library sold for $190,000.[37]
- ^ "A Conversation with Daniel Kestenbaum".
- ^ "Bidspirit - Online auctions in the USA". Bidspirit. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ^ "From the Dawn of Printing Why Rare Hebrew Manuscripts Are Commanding Exorbitant Fees". The Forward. December 17, 2004. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ^ Artdaily. "Kestenbaum & Company doubles sales in their second Fine Musical Instruments auction". artdaily.cc. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ^ McBee, Richard (June 8, 2012). "Kestenbaum's Gems". Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ^ ChaimShamayim (July 26, 2013). "Kestenbaum & Company Chairman Goes to Washington | The Yeshiva World". Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ^ Jewish Heritage Month Congressional Celebration - 2013, retrieved December 29, 2023
- ^ "Contact - Kestenbaum and Company BROOKLYN". Kestenbaum and Company. Retrieved December 30, 2023.
- ^ "Press Release - Missing Rare Print Returns to the Jewish Museum in Prague" (PDF). Jewish Museum in Prague. Retrieved December 30, 2023.
- ^ s.r.o. (www.nux.cz), Nux; Praze, Židovské muzeum v. "Missing Rare Print Returned to the Jewish Museum in Prague | News detail | Židovské muzeum v Praze". www.jewishmuseum.cz. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ^ "Hebrew grammar book from 16th century returns to Prague". AP News. January 16, 2018. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ^ Kahn, Eve M. (November 15, 2012). "Judaica From Tuck Collection in London to Be Auctioned". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ^ "Past Auctions - Auction 56". Kestenbaum and Company. Retrieved December 30, 2023.
- ^ "Past Auctions - Auction 78". Kestenbaum and Company. Retrieved December 30, 2023.
- ^ "Past Auctions - Auction 82". Kestenbaum and Company. Retrieved December 30, 2023.
- ^ Yossie (September 23, 2011). "Inagural Kosher Wine Auction at Kestenbaum's". Yossie's Corkboard. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ^ "Going Once, Twice, Sold: Kestenbaum's Kosher Wine Auction". The Forward. May 17, 2011. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ^ "Pat Auctions - Auction 52". Kestenbaum and Company. Retrieved December 30, 2023.
- ^ "Introduction to Jewish Book Collecting". ILAB - EN. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ^ "1492: The First Mishna Is Printed". Haaretz. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ^ "Rare Moritz Daniel Oppenheim painting is among featured works to be sold at Kestenbaum & Company". artdaily. Retrieved December 30, 2023.
- ^ "Past Auctions - Auction 67". Kestenbaum and Company. Retrieved December 30, 2023.
- ^ Yumpu.com. "Auction 43 Catalogue - Kestenbaum & Company". yumpu.com. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ^ "Past Auctions - Auction 56 Lot 5". Kestenbaum and Company. Retrieved December 30, 2023.
- ^ "Past Auctions - Auction 72 Lot 1". Kestenbaum and Company. Retrieved December 30, 2023.
- ^ "Maimonides' Mishneh Torah Brings $148,240 At Kestenbaum Sale - Antiques And The Arts WeeklyAntiques And The Arts Weekly". August 23, 2005. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ^ Rocker, Simon. "English collector's rare Judaica sell for nearly £250,000". www.thejc.com. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ^ "Past Auctions - Auction 61 Lot 318". Kestenbaum and Company. Retrieved December 30, 2023.
- ^ "Marilyn Monroe's Menorah Sells For More Than $112,000 | Dolce Luxury Magazine". dolcemag.com. December 19, 2019. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ^ "Past Auctions - Auction 34". Kestenbaum and Company. Retrieved December 30, 2023.
- ^ "Kestenbaum Auctions Rare Tanya". COLlive. December 8, 2011. Retrieved December 29, 2023.
- ^ "Past Auctions - Auction 3". Kestenbaum and Company. Retrieved December 30, 2023.
- ^ "Past Auctions - Auction 11". Kestenbaum and Company. Retrieved December 30, 2023.
- ^ "Past Auctions - Auction 20". Kestenbaum and Company. Retrieved December 30, 2023.
- ^ "Past Auctions - Auction 26". Kestenbaum and Company. Retrieved December 30, 2023.
- ^ "Past Auctions - Auction 54". Kestenbaum and Company. Retrieved December 30, 2023.
- ^ "Valmadonna Trust Library auction in NY brings record sales. But who benefits?". The Times of Israel.
- in-depth (not just brief mentions about the subject or routine announcements)
- reliable
- secondary
- strictly independent of the subject
Make sure you add references that meet all four of these criteria before resubmitting. Learn about mistakes to avoid when addressing this issue. If no additional references exist, the subject is not suitable for Wikipedia.