Dr. Israel Teyer is an Erasmus+ recipient with a difference. He is in his late 70s and is well into his second career as a historian. In the 60s, he started out as a bookkeeper at the Israel Discount Bank eventually becoming an accountant and he worked in various positions for 34 years. He graduated with a CPA in 1985 and retired in 2008 after having worked with the Global Investment Bank Ltd for 11 years.
In 2008/9, he registered for his BA in General History and History of Art at Tel Aviv University and graduated with his MA in General History in 2015 from this university. In September 2020, he was awarded a PhD in General History by Bar-Ilan University and two months later, received a postdoctoral fellowship in the Faculty of Social Sciences in the Department of Geographical History at Bar-Ilan University.
Born in Chelyabinsk in the former Soviet Union, he made Aliyah in 1949 and now lives in Petach Tikva. He is a painter, author, and songwriter in his spare time.
Dr. Israel Teyer Shares his Thoughts about Erasmus+
I was a doctoral student in the Department of General History (Faculty of Humanities) at Bar-Ilan University when I participated in the Erasmus+ student exchange program. I ended up in the Department of Economic History (Faculty of Economics) at the University of Verona in Italy and was privileged to have Prof. Eduardo Demo as my supervisor.
I spent six months in Verona – from 15 September 2017 until the end of February 2018. My research for my PhD was related to the contribution of Matthäus Schwarz, the chief accountant of the firm, Fugger, during the first half of the 16th century. The city of Augsburg in southern Germany was the center of that firm. Fugger was, at that time, the largest firm in the world.
L-R: Israel Teyer with his supervisor, Prof. Edoardo Demo from the
Department of Economics at the University of Verona, Italy
I wanted to examine the activities of the Fugger firm in general, and specifically Schwarz’s contribution, and I found it appropriate to first examine the development of the banking profession and the double-entry bookkeeping system in Italy.
During my stay in Verona, the archives in Venice and the libraries in Verona and Padua were opened to me. I had the privilege of perusing the original accounting books of a family of merchants in Venice, the Barbarigo family, which had been running continuously for 150 years since 1430. These books served as the basis for the first book of the bookkeeping profession published by Luca Pacioli in the late 15th century.
I am an accountant in my professional training. A shiver went through me as I indirectly grasped these books knowing that they are the basis of dual (Italian) bookkeeping and that, about 500 years ago, the accounting father reviewed them and edited his book according to them.
I also visited the Fugger family’s archive in Germany and received many documents from them that also helped me with my research. The treasurer of the archive pointed out to me that no researcher had visited it in more than 60 years.
I’d like to acknowledge my supervisor at Bar-Ilan University, Prof. Myriam Grielsammer, who accompanied and guided me for five years. It is only through her efforts that the gates of these fascinating archives were opened to me and that I was able to experience them through the Erasmus+ exchange program.
My experience in Italy also contributed in so many ways other than my research. I spent a lot of time with my wife and the stay away from home contributed so much our relationship.
We made close contact with the Jews of the Verona community. On Friday evenings and some Saturdays, we went to the synagogue and we had a sense of shared destiny. We were often hosted by members of the community. One person I met, Jonathan Moraty, helped me a lot in translating writings.
The research, of course, added to my own vocabulary in Italian, English, and German.
The most striking experience for me as a professional is how to relate to primary sources.
I am currently conducting postdoctoral research as part of the Faculty of Social Sciences at Bar-Ilan. The experience I gained in Italy helps me to analyze the findings that emerge from these sources.
The Erasmus+ program allowed me to engage in research for an extended period without financial worries. I gained friends with whom I am still in touch on a regular basis.
During my lifetime, I circled the globe as a tourist and had plenty of wonderful experiences, but it is nothing like a long stay in one place. While in Verona, I had a sense of being a local. I adapted to the manners of the place, to the culture, to the language, to the food, and to the music. The long stay and daily life brought me closer to the culture. This was an experience that I appreciate and cherish.
The Italians are very similar in temperament to the Israelis, but we Israelis have a lot to learn from them – in the Driving culture, table manners, in the street, and in their love of music.
During the first month of my stay, I took an intensive course in Italian. Every student who comes to Italy must take this course, which brings him closer to the language and the locals. I got to know northern Italy and its treasures, and I learned to get by for a long time abroad outside the familiar and protective space.
I would like to be able to reciprocate the hospitality I received during my exchange experience by being there for Italian students coming to Israel from the University of Verona.
