This event, taking place at Library and Archives Canada, 395 Wellington St, Ottawa on Wednesday, April 3, 7:00-9:00 pm with reception to follow, is offered in collaboration with the Concordia Institute for Canadian Jewish Studies.

In 1519, printer and Christian Hebraist Daniel Bomberg began the monumental task of printing the 44 treatises of the Talmud, becoming the first to do so. It remains the model for all subsequent editions printed to this day. The printing of the Bomberg Talmud is a significant event in the history of printing, on par with the printing of the Gutenberg or Luther Bibles. 

This event will feature a keynote lecture by Dr. Bruce E. Nielsen, the Judaica Public Services Librarian & Archivist at the Katz Center for Advanced Judaic Studies, University of Pennsylvania. He is recognized worldwide as a leading expert on the Bomberg Talmud. Complementing the lecture will be a series of short talkbacks that lead into a round-table discussion with a diverse range of scholars.

Scholars giving talkbacks include Dr. Norma Joseph (Concordia University), a specialist in women and religion who will provide a feminist reflection on the legacy of the Talmud; and Dr. Pierre Anctil (University of Ottawa), who will speak to the textual tradition of the Talmud in Canada, as the 500th anniversary of the first full Talmud printing is also the 100th anniversary of the first Talmud printed in Canada.

Seating is limited, so please register by March 29, 2019. For more information about this event, email bac.invitation.lac@canada.ca. See also the event page on the Library and Archives Canada website, here.