The Alexander
Collection
The Alexander Collection
in the Alexander Museum of Postal History and Philately in the
Eretz Israel Museumin Tel Aviv is an impressive assemblage of
historic and philatelic documents embracing six centuries of
history in The Holy Land.
For over 50 years, Zvi Alexander has
worked diligently to build this very significant collection
of Holy Land postal history. The collection's importance derives
from its enormous scope, the length of the historical period it
covers and its unique concentration of rare and significant
items.
Stamps and their usage on letters
reflect not only the historical, economic, cultural and political
background of their times, but also demonstrate the means available
for communication and the prevailing transportation arteries. Until
recently, letters were the most common and important way for people
to communicate with family, friends, business associates and
institutions. Thus through philately, we learn about the lives of
people throughout different periods and in many places around the
world.
A continuous Jewish presence remained
in the land of individuals immigrating to Israel, mostly for
religious reasons. In 1870, the first Jewish agricultural school,
Mikveh Israel, was established by Alliance Israelite Universelle.
The school's purpose was to help the Jews in the land of Israel
become self-sufficient and improve their living conditions. Indeed,
the 1880's saw the establishment of the first Jewish agricultural
communities (Moshavot) in Palestine, followed by the first communal
settlements Moshavim and Kibbutzim. After World War I, the Ottoman
Empire disintegrated and the British ruled Palestine for thirty
years. World War II brought with it illegal immigration of Jewish
refugees from Europe. Finally, May 14, 1948 saw the birth of the
State of Israel.
The Alexander collection
depicts the history of the Holy Land through the eyes of a
philatelist and postal historian. Beginning in the 15th
century, through the pre-philatelic period, the Turkish Post,
Foreign Post Offices, World War I, the evolution of Zionism, the
development of agricultural settlements, the British Mandate, the
struggle for independence, the Israeli War of Independence, and up
to the birth of the State of Israel. The collection sheds light on
postal services and theHoly Land from a broad historical
perspective. It highlights both the geopolitical and socio-economic
aspects of the respective peoples and periods, with a particular
emphasis on the strong ties of World Jewry to the Land of Israel
and the Zionist endeavor. It also includes collections of "Arab
Palestine" showing the Arab effort to fight the establishment of
the Jewish State and "Overland Mail" via the Syro-Iraqi great
desert.