The only known original copy of 'HaTikvah'

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Apr 29, 2020 | News | Jerusalem & Area
The only known original copy of 'HaTikvah'

Decades after his death, the writer of Israel’s national anthem, “HaTikvah” would become known as “The First Hebrew Hippie.” A more common moniker, and perhaps more fitting, was “Imber, the Wandering Jew.” Indeed, the title reflects some of the adventures of this man, who was a bit of an enigma in the eyes of his contemporaries, and has largely remained one to this day. Even after arriving at the destination about which he wrote so many poems, he only managed to stay there for five years before moving on to continue his wanderings.

In 1882, Naftali Herz Imber closed the shop where he sold matches, charms and amulets in the market of Istanbul, and went to meet Sir Laurence Oliphant, a Member of the British Parliament and businessman. Imber’s initial goal was to declare before Oliphant that the Jewish people did not need Britain’s favors in order to return to their ancestral homeland. However, as he described later on, “when I entered, I laid my eyes on Mrs. Oliphant for the first time.” This was enough for the young man to come up with a new plan — a joint journey to the Holy Land. That same year, funded entirely by Oliphant, (Imber was broke and wouldn’t have it any other way), the three reached the port of Haifa.

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