Ex libris van JFN after 1910

Samuel Jessurun de Mesquita created this bookplate, titled 'Ex libris van JFN,' using a woodcut technique. Mesquita, a Dutch artist of Sephardic Jewish descent, lived in a time of rising antisemitism and increasing social tensions. The stark geometric shapes in this bookplate, combined with the mysterious initials JFN, speak to a sense of identity both concealed and asserted. Consider the emotional weight of claiming ownership over knowledge and stories during a period when one’s own history was being questioned and threatened. The clean lines and abstract forms can be seen as both a modernist aesthetic choice and a deliberate act of self-definition. Mesquita’s life was tragically cut short during the Holocaust. In this context, this seemingly simple bookplate becomes a poignant reminder of the power of art to preserve memory, resist erasure, and affirm identity in the face of overwhelming adversity.