ued to suspect such a motive behind Christian interest in
Hebrew texts during the Renaissance, with the result that
Jewish teachers or Christian pupils sometimes encoun-
tered hostility from their coreligionists.
In the Renaissance the principal spur to Hebrew stud-
ies was the desire for better understanding of the Bible.
John COLETin 1497 stressed the importance of access to
the original Hebrew version of the Old Testament and to
Jewish commentaries on it. The idea was given wider cur-
rency by ERASMUSin his introduction to his 1516 New Tes-
tament. The Reformation, with its emphasis on the Word
of God, stimulated all aspects of biblical scholarship.
LUTHERand TYNDALE, as Bible translators, were both com-
petent Hebraists, as were ZWINGLI, MELANCHTHON,
BULLINGER, and CALVIN.
In the pre-printing era access to Hebrew texts had
been a problem. Gianozzo Manetti (1396–1459), secretary
to Pope NICHOLAS V, was instrumental in starting the
collection of Hebrew manuscripts at the Vatican, where
Pope SIXTUS IVlater endowed Hebrew scriptores. The first
printed Hebrew book appeared in 1475, with the first
complete Hebrew Bible following in 1488 from the press
of the Jewish printer Joshua Solomon of Soncino (died
1493). Before 1500 printing in Hebrew was confined to
Italy, Spain, and Portugal but later members of the Son-
cino printing dynasty were responsible for setting up
Hebrew presses further afield: in Prague (1512), Thes-
saloniki (1527), and Constaninople/Istanbul (1530).
Gershom Soncino (died 1534) was a leader in the devel-
opment of Hebrew typography; he was the first to use
woodcut illustrations for Hebrew texts and also produced
the first Hebrew printed book on mathematics, the Sefer
ha-Mispar (Constantinople, 1532–33) of Rabbi Elijah
Misrachi (c. 1455–1526). Two outstanding 16th-century
printers of Hebrew were the Fleming Daniel Bomberg
(died 1549) at Venice and the Basle printer Johann
FROBEN. Both Christians themselves, they were assisted by
the best Jewish and Christian Hebraists of their day. The
renowned Hebrew teacher Elias LEVITApublished his fa-
mous treatise on the Masoretic text of the Bible (1538)
while working for Bomberg, and the following year Sebas-
tian MÜNSTERpublished the second edition of Levita’s
work in Basle. An example of the emphasis placed by
Reformation scholars on access to Hebrew texts is the
Hebrew printing press set up at Isny im Allgäu, Württem-
berg, by the Protestant pastor Paul Fagius, which in
1541–42 was under the supervision of Levita. Later ARIAS
MONTANOwas a regular reader for the PLANTIN PRESS,
which issued his Polyglot Bible (1568–73), in which the
Hebrew text was printed with type obtained from
Bomberg’s descendants.
At first Hebrew studies spread mainly through per-
sonal contacts between individual scholars. Notable
teachers were Levita and Obediah Sforno (1475–1550);
the latter succeeded Jacob Loans (died 1506) as tutor to
Johann REUCHLIN. Both Reuchlin in Germany and PICO
DELLA MIRANDOLAin Italy were eminent early advocates of
Hebrew studies, and through them the CABBALAbecame
known to Renaissance scholars. Despite antisemitic preju-
dice, which hardened in Catholic countries during the
Counter-Reformation, Hebrew teaching gradually became
institutionalized as part of the enthusiasm for the new
learning. Chairs of Hebrew were established at Bologna
(1488) and Rome (1514) universities. In England Henry
VIII founded a Hebrew professorship at Cambridge in
1540 and Hebrew was taught at the London Merchant
Taylors’ School from its foundation (1561).Heemskerck, Jakob van See BARENTS, WILLEMHeemskerck, Maarten van (1498–1574) Netherlands
painter
He was born at Heemskerck, near Alkmaar, and after
working under the obscure artists Cornelis Willemsz. in
Haarlem and Jan Lucasz. in Delft, entered the studio of Jan
van SCORELat Haarlem (1527). Initially Scorel’s student,
he seems subsequently to have become his collaborator,
and their works are sometimes confused. Between 1532
and 1536 Heemskerck was living in Italy, principally at
Rome, where he recorded his impressions of classical ar-
chitecture and sculpture in two sketchbooks (now in
Berlin). After his return from Italy he specialized in reli-
gious paintings and classical allegories, redolent with ar-
chitectural and decorative motifs copied from ancient
monuments and the works of contemporary Italian man-
nerist painters. The flamboyancy of these narrative paint-
ings contrasts markedly with the sober naturalism of his
portraits. Both these aspects of his style find expression in
the Self-Portrait (1553; Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge)
in which his massive bearded head is set against the back-
drop of a view of the Colosseum, like an allegory of the as-
pirations of northern visitors to Rome.Heere, Lucas de (1534–1584) Flemish painter
Born in Ghent, de Heere was taught by Frans FLORISand
himself taught Carel van MANDERin the late 1560s. He
worked in France and England as well as Ghent, where his
Solomon and the Queen of Sheba (1559) is in St. Bavon’s
cathedral. Also attributed to him is the design of the fa-
mous Valois tapestries (1582; Uffizi, Florence), woven in
Flanders to celebrate the arrival there of the soon to be
discredited FRANCIS, Duke of (Alençon-)Anjou, in his role
of “defender of the liberties of the Netherlands.”Hegius, Alexander (Alexander von Heek) (c. 1433–
1498) German humanist and educator
He was born at Heek, Westphalia, and was at one time a
pupil of Thomas à Kempis. He opened a school at Deven-
ter, Holland, in 1474. Through this school passed many of
the leading figures of the northern Renaissance, includingHHeeggiiuuss,, AAlleexxaannddeerr 2 23333