Continental School late 18th century

Mrs. Cecil Roth, great-great-granddaughter of the sitter, who identifies a former owner as Aaron Goldsmid, a prominent member of the London Stock Exchange and a contemporary of Falk's.

Irene Roth, London's Baal Shem, Still a Magical Mystery Man, in The Jewish Week, August 23, 1985, p. 21, illustrated
Richard I. Cohen, Jewish Icons, Art and Society in Modern Europe, Los Angeles and London, 1998, p. 125 (the print)
David Ruderman, Jewish Enlightenment in an English Key: Anglo Jewry's Construction of Modern Jewish Thought, Princeton and Oxford, Princeton University Press, 2000

Samuel (Shmuel) Jacob Hayyim Falk (ca.1710-1782), known as the Ba'al Shem of London, had a colourful history. Born at an unknown Eastern European location, of Sephardic descent, Falk settled in London in 1742. Said to have consorted with leading aristocratic, theological, artistic and academic figures of the time, he was considered a charlatan by some and a miracle worker by others. An alchemist and Freemason, this controversial figure was prominent in the world of Kabbalah. Legend has it that his magical inscription on its doorposts saved the Great Synagogue of London from being destroyed by fire. Nearly burnt at the stake for sorcery in Westphalia, accused of being a follower of the false messiah, Shabtai Zvi, Falk nonetheless made his fortune performing "miracles."

Falk's controversial activities and his role in 18th century Anglo Jewish life are described as "bizarre cultural politics" (p. 22) in David Ruderman's Jewish Enlightenment in an English Key: Anglo Jewry's Construction of Modern Jewish Thought. Ruderman also discusses "the common assumption that Jews remained traditionally faithful to the monarchy and politically conservative as a vulnerable minority" (p. 22) in 18th century England. Samuel Falk was one of a number of personalities of his time that challenge this thought. His alleged political and religious radicalism proves this to be untrue.

An 19th century print, erronoeously attributed to John Singleton Copley, was created based on the painting offered here.