After nearly eight decades of displacement, a rare 16th-century Hebrew religious text has been officially returned to its rightful home in Hungary. This significant cultural repatriation, facilitated by U.S. and Hungarian officials, saw the Chamisa Humshe Torrah and Haftarot, collectively known as the Di Gara Text, reinstated to the Jewish Theological Seminary in Budapest, as reported by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York. At a recent ceremony held at the Hungarian Consulate in New York City, an array of dignitaries assembled to mark the conclusion of this chapter in the text's storied history.
In a testament to the tenacity and cooperation of international legal and cultural institutions, "The repatriation of the nearly 450-year-old Di Gara Text to the Jewish Theological Seminary marks the end of the text’s 80-year displacement from its rightful home," said U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton and HSI Special Agent in Charge Ricky J. Patel. Their offices were instrumental in the effort to securely return the historically valuable manuscript, which was looted by Nazi forces during World War II, as per a statement obtained by the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
The Di Gara Text was originally printed by Giovanni di Gara in Venice and later became part of the Della Torre Collection, owned by the Italian Jewish scholar Rabbi Lelio Della Torre. After his death, the collection was acquired by the Jewish Theological Seminary, only to be plundered amidst the occupation of Budapest in 1944. The text's journey took a turn when Hungarian authorities alerted the U.S. to its sale listing for $19,000 on AbeBooks, a clue which eventually led to its seizure by HSI agents in 2023.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres ratified an order to forfeit the Di Gara Text on October 4, 2024, paving the way for the artifact to be officially handed over to its historical owner. This resolution arrives as a poignant reminder of the ongoing legacy of wartime plunder and the importance of cultural preservation. The combined investigative work of HSI’s Cultural Property, Art, and Antiquities Squad and the Hungarian Inspectorate of Cultural Goods played a pivotal role in this repatriation success story.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin A. Gianforti of the Illicit Finance and Money Laundering Unit oversaw the legal negotiations resulting in the text’s return. The Jewish Theological Seminary, along with the participating governments, has expressed gratitude for the collaborative efforts that led to the restoration of a cultural treasure once thought lost to time.
