Israel Museum, Jerusalem

Israel Museum, Jerusalem The Israel Museum is the largest cultural institution in the State of Israel and is ranked among the leading art and archaeology museums in the world.

Founded in 1965, the Museum houses encyclopedic collections ranging from prehistory through contemporary art and includes the most extensive holdings of Biblical and Holy Land archaeology in the world, among them the Dead Sea Scrolls. In just 50 years, the Museum has built a far-ranging collection of over 500,000 objects through an unparalleled legacy of gifts and support from its circle of patron

s worldwide. The Museum also organizes and presents programming at its off-site locations in Jerusalem at the Rockefeller Archaeological Museum, where it presents archaeological artifacts from the Land of Israel, and at its historic Ticho House in downtown Jerusalem, a venue for exhibitions of contemporary Israeli art.

“I could fill an entire second life with working on my prints.” – M.C. EscherHappy birthday to Dutch graphic artist Maur...
17/06/2026

“I could fill an entire second life with working on my prints.” – M.C. Escher

Happy birthday to Dutch graphic artist Maurits Cornelis Escher, born on June 17, 1898!

Escher created bookplates for a living, using various printing techniques. This New Year’s greeting card commissioned by the Dutch Ex Libris Circle (of which he was a member) reflects themes that preoccupied him – unusual vantage points and compositions integrating different planes of depth.

Escher made this card in late 1946, after the end of World War II, and it powerfully conveys the expectation that 1947 would be a better year than previous ones. It also pays tribute to the actions of the Dutch Resistance. The scene adopts the point of view of an underground member emerging from his hiding place; his strong arms grasp the ladder and he is about to climb into the free, bright world above. An optimistic inscription at the bottom of the print reads: “We Shall Emerge!”

This Escher work, and others, are now on view in our current exhibition, People of the Books: Ex Libris from the Museum’s Collection.

[Maurits Cornelis Escher, New Year’s Greeting Card (for the Dutch Ex Libris Circle), The Hague, 1946. Wood engraving. Gift of Charles and Evelyn Kramer, New York, to American Friends of the Israel Museum. ©2026 The M.C. Escher Company - the Netherlands. All rights reserved. Used by permission. www.mcescher.com]

The Epic of Gilgamesh—the oldest story ever told—follows a restless young king on an unforgettable quest for fame and et...
16/06/2026

The Epic of Gilgamesh—the oldest story ever told—follows a restless young king on an unforgettable quest for fame and eternal legacy. Written nearly 4,000 years ago in Akkadian on clay tablets, this epic still speaks to us today—about friendship, fear, the limits of power, and the ultimate question: how should we live, knowing that death is inevitable?

Join us for a special gallery talk this Friday with curators Nurith Goshen and Arina Laura Peri, as they discuss a recently published Hebrew translation that breathes new life into the ancient text—faithful to the original, yet vivid and modern—bringing Gilgamesh’s journey back to readers as a deeply human story. Goshen and Peri will be hosting the translators, Professors Uri Cohen and Nathan Wasserman.

The gallery talk will take place this Friday, June 19 at 11:00 am (in Hebrew). Please find more information on our website.

[Excerpt from the “Gilgamesh Epic,” a popular tale of the quest for eternal life. Late Bronze Age, 14th century BCE. Clay. Israel Antiquities Authority. Photo © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, by Zohar Shemesh]

We are saddened by the loss of David Hockney, one of the most inventive and influential artists of our time, who passed ...
14/06/2026

We are saddened by the loss of David Hockney, one of the most inventive and influential artists of our time, who passed away one month short of his 89th birthday.

In Hockney’s own words: "To reduce things to line is really one of the hardest things.” And yet, he was a master of distilling images to their essence.

The IMJ Prints and Drawings collection holds Hockney works that epitomize his art of line. Hockney’s prints for the illustrated book, Six Fairy Tales from the Brothers Grimm (1969), to which the museum dedicated an exhibition in 2024-25, uniquely interpret these stories. His depictions of the protagonists as lone figures, set against bare backgrounds, detach them from any specific context and allow our imaginations to run free. In the drawing Henry Sleeping (1978), he conveys volume, texture, and the weight of his close friend Henry Geldzahler's head, in just a few strokes of the pen.
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[David Hockney, Henry Sleeping, 1978(?). Gift of the artist to American Friends of the Israel Museum.]
[David Hockney, Six Fairy Tales from the Brothers Grimm, 1969-70. Gift of Victor Constantiner, New York, to American Friends of the Israel Museum]

Sunset yoga at the museum 🧘🏻‍♀️ Sunday, June 21In honor of International Yoga Day, we’re kicking off the summer with a y...
11/06/2026

Sunset yoga at the museum 🧘🏻‍♀️ Sunday, June 21

In honor of International Yoga Day, we’re kicking off the summer with a yoga session facing a stunning view of our Art Garden.

The session is suitable for children and adults at all levels 🪷

More details and tickets are available on our website.

[Anish Kapoor, Turning the World Upside Down, Jerusalem, 2010. Stainless steel. Gift of Richard Goldman, San Francisco; Charles Bronfman, New York; and Lily Safra, Monaco, with additional support from the Barbara and Eugene Schwartz Contemporary Art Acquisition Endowment Fund, in memory of the Israel Museum’s Founder and Father, Teddy Kollek. © The artist]

People of the Books: Ex Libris from the Museum’s Collection | New exhibition!A bookplate (or “ex libris,” meaning “from ...
09/06/2026

People of the Books: Ex Libris from the Museum’s Collection | New exhibition!

A bookplate (or “ex libris,” meaning “from the books/ library of” in Latin) is a mark of ownership pasted inside a book’s cover that includes the owner’s name, an illustration, and sometimes also a motto. Over time, bookplates became a means of personal expression capturing essential aspects of the library owner’s life, and so stylized versions were created in collaboration with leading artists.

This exhibition displays, for the first time, the extensive bookplate collection of the Israel Museum, which originated at the Bezalel National Museum and is the largest in the country. This collection – approximately 15,000 items – testifies to the importance of books in local culture, and there is therefore no better place than the Museum Library to display this selection.

More information about the exhibition and upcoming gallery talks can be found on our website.

[M.C. Escher, Ex Libris Albert Ernst Bosman, 1946. Wood engraving. Gift of Charles Kramer, New York, to American Friends of the Israel Museum.]
[E. M. Lilien, Ex Libris Otto Warburg. Zincograph. Gift of the artist’s family.]
[Jacob Pins, Ex Libris Elisheva Cohen, 1990. Woodcut. Gift of the artist.]

In light of recent developments and in accordance with Home Front Command guidelines, the museum is closed to visitors. ...
08/06/2026

In light of recent developments and in accordance with Home Front Command guidelines, the museum is closed to visitors. Significant works have been transferred to secure storage to ensure their preservation.

We hope for quieter days ahead, and for the museum’s reopening to the public.

Please continue to follow updates on our website and social media channels.

In accordance with Home Front Command directives, the museum is closed today.Hoping for quieter days ahead.
08/06/2026

In accordance with Home Front Command directives, the museum is closed today.

Hoping for quieter days ahead.

05/06/2026

Thank you to everyone who attended last night’s opening event for our new exhibitions, and the inauguration of the renewed Art Garden! 💫💫

Inauguration of the renewed Art Garden ✨ Menashe Kadishman: Urban | Nature ✨ People of the Books: Ex Libris from the Museum’s Collection ✨ Melisende, Queen of Jerusalem ✨ In God We Trust: Coins and Medals, with the Divine Name

Come see the new exhibitions and enjoy the newly renovated Art Garden –
✨The museum is now also open on Wednesdays! ✨

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Photography: Hanna Taieb

There are very few canonical Hebrew manuscripts worldwide known to have been written by a female scribe — this Esther Sc...
05/06/2026

There are very few canonical Hebrew manuscripts worldwide known to have been written by a female scribe — this Esther Scroll is one of them.

Written on the 10th of Adar 1, 5527 (February 9, 1767) by Roman 14-year-old Luna Ambron, the richly decorated parchment sheet contains the ceremonial blessings and liturgical poems read on Purim. It is the centerpiece of our current exhibition, The Girl who Wrote: Luna Ambron’s Esther Scroll, bringing together the only three known Esther Scrolls and Purim blessing sheets signed by women, all produced in Italy. They are displayed alongside a selection of rare Hebrew manuscripts penned by female scribes, highlighting women’s often-overlooked contributions to Jewish manuscript culture.

Learn more about Luna Ambron and these manuscripts during an English-language gallery talk with curator Anna Nizza-Caplan on Tuesday, June 9 at 18:15. The talk is included with the cost of admission, please register in advance on the museum website.

[Esther Scroll and blessings sheet for Purim scribed by Luna, daughter of Leone Ambron. Rome, 1767. Handwritten on parchment; ink and tempera. The Israel Museum Collection: Purchased through the gift of the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Foundation to American Friends of the Israel Museum, in honor of Daisy Raccah-Djivre. Photo © The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, by Zohar Shemesh]

01/06/2026

FIFA World Cup 2026 at the Ticho House garden ⚽🍺 Come watch screenings of the matches, and enjoy drinks and snacks.

The World Cup games will be broadcast on a big screen in the magical Ticho House garden, in the heart of the city, during the months of June and July. Eser restaurant will be offering beer, wine, alcohol, and nibbles during the games.

Admission is free!

Screening schedule:
20.6 at 20:00 | Netherlands-Sweden
22.6 at 20:00 | Argentina-Austria
29.6 at 20:00 | Last 32
30.6 at 20:00 | Last 32
1.7 at 19:00 | Last 32
4.7 at 20:00 | Round of 16 finals
7.7 at 19:00 | Round of 16 finals

Ticho House, HaRav Agan St. 10, Jerusalem

Address

Ruppin Boulevard 11
Jerusalem
9171002

Opening Hours

Monday 10:00 - 16:00
Tuesday 16:00 - 20:00
Thursday 10:00 - 16:00
Friday 10:00 - 14:00
Saturday 10:00 - 16:00

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