Page 364 - The Legacy of Abraham Rothstein - text

Portraits: historical

The great medieval sage is rendered here from the waist up
behind a table. One elbow rests on a stack of books, the hand
on his cheek in an attitude of listening or considering; the other
hand rests on the table. He wears a yarmulke, and his face
displays both peyes and a spade beard; his eyes are open and he
is frowning—a sign of cogitation rather than displeasure in
AR’s language of physiognomy. The effect is one of careful
judgement, based upon textual authority rather than temporal
position—and this, indeed, was the subject’s situation in life, a
scholar defending tradition against the deviations erupting in a
religion and culture in exile.

83 Tolstoy *
Wood
11.25” x 2.75”
Inscription: Leo T. (on base)

The Russian aristocrat and author stands, hands clasped at his
midsection, on a circular base. His head is out of proportion to
his body, befitting Tolstoy’s mental capacity and the sculptor’s
desire to create a likeness. The lines and volumes are smooth
and rounded; this piece may have been carved in the same
period as the flute player (no. 58); it appears in a photograph
dated April 1956.

97 Head of a man *
Wood
7.75” x 4.75”

This bust in profile is carved in low relief on a rectangular
plaque with beveled corners. The man has a high rounded
forehead symmetrically mirroring his full rounded beard (but
not as extreme as the Man in the Moon, no. 106). AR took a
lot of care in carving the ear, with the result that it is the
dominant feature on the face. The only clue available to
identify the subject is the old-fashioned solitaire cravat he
wears; although the man does not bear a great resemblance to
Theodor Herzl, it is curious that AR left no portrait explicitly
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