EISENMENGER, aiz'en-meng'er, JOHANN ANDREAS: German Orientalist; b. at Mannheim
1654; d. at Heidelberg Dec. 20, 1704. He studied
at the Collegium sapientiae at Heidelberg,
where his
knowledge of Hebrew attracted the attention of
Prince Karl Ludwig, who granted him a traveling
stipend enabling him to visit England and Holland.
The conversion of three Christians to Judaism
while he was at Amsterdam made him decide to
collect alt available anti-Jewish data for a work
which should prove a warning to Christians, and at
the same time shame the Jews. Returning from
his travels he continued his studies for nineteen
years, first at Heidelberg and later at Frankfort-on
the-Main, availing himself of the services of Jews
who little suspected the purpose for which
they
were engaged as his tutors. In 1700 he published
his
Entdecktes Judenthum,
styling it " a truthful
and authentic account of the horrible manner in
which the obdurate Jews blaspheme and dishonor the
moat Holy Trinity, God the Father, Son, and Holy
Ghost; insult the holy mother of Christ, the New
Testament, the Evangelists and Apostles; mock
ingly traduce the Christian Religion, and disdain
and curse all Christianity to the utmost: where
also are shown many other things and great errors
of Jewish religion and theology hitherto either not
at all or only partially known to the Christians, as
well as numerous ridiculous and merry fables and
follies." Prince Johann Wilhelm approved of
Eiaenmenger's book, and appointed him professor
of Oriental languages at Heidelberg, but at the
request of the Jews the imperial government con
fiscated the work, lest its publication cause dis
turbances. Eisenmenger found that he might be
able to publish his book ii. Holland. The Jews
offered him 12,000 florins for the edition of 2,000
copies, but he asked 30,000, and died while nego
tiations were still in progress. His heirs appealed to
Frederick I. of Prussia, who carried their cause be
fore the emperors Leopold and Joseph, but without
success. At length Frederick I. (1711) decided to
have the work published "outside the kingdom,"
ostensibly in Königsberg but in reality in Berlin,
and presented half the edition to Eisenmenger's
heirs. Forty years later the Frankfort edition
appeared. The
Entdecktes Judenthum
did not meet
with the success which its author had hoped since
it could no more be called a faithful representation
of Judaism than an indiscriminate collection of
everything superstitious and repulsive within Chris
tian literature could be termed characteristic of
Christianity. During recent decades August Roh
ling and others have used the work in anti-Semitic
propaganda, and a reprint of the portions most
available for that purpose has been made by F. X.
Schieferl (Dresden, 1893). Eisenmenger collab
orated with Johann Leusden in the preparation of
an edition of the unpointed Hebrew text of the
Old Testament (Amsterdam, 1694), and also wrote
a
Lezicum Orientate Harmonicum,
which is still
unpublished.
(G. Dalman.)
Bibliography:
J. J.
Schudt, Jüdische MerkuHtrdspkeiten,
i. 426-438, iii. 1-$, iv. 288-287, Frankfort, 1714; H.
Graetz, Geachrochte der
Juden, x. 273, 278, 281, Leipsic,
1897; KL, iv. 343-348; JE, v. 80,82.
