Even Hoshen

Even Hoshen (אבן חושן) is an Israeli private press and publishing house founded in 1994 by the historian and art curator Uzi Agassi, later joined by his son Ido. Based in Raʻananah, it specializes in books in an artistic format, with a particular focus on art books and poetry. The press is known for its bibliophilic approach: great attention is paid to the physical appearance of each book, treating it not merely as a printed and bound text but as a material art object. Its catalogue includes limited editions printed in letterpress on high-quality paper, often accompanied by original etchings, prints, or woodcuts, with special handmade bindings presented in hand-crafted boxes. These books are exhibited in libraries, museums, galleries, and private collections around the world. Even Hoshen organizes its output into series named after the stones of the biblical high priest's breastplate (ḥoshen). These include 'Pitdah' for poetry, 'Aḥlamah' for children's books, 'Sapir' for limited editions with numbered and signed prints by artists such as Moshe Gershuni, Aviva Uri, Naftali Bezem, and Uri Lifshitz, 'Bareket' for religious books in artistic format, and 'Nofekh' for Hebrew prose. In addition, the press publishes unique books on plastic arts, printing arts, and typography, and offers artistic binding services. Most of its books are printed in the elegant Hebrew typeface Drogolin. Since 1998, Even Hoshen has published the poetry journal 'Shevo' (שבו), edited by Uzi Agassi. The press also runs a customer club, sells books through its website, and accepts manuscript submissions. Its catalogue features notable works such as Israel Pincas's 'Be-yam ha-atik shelanu' with prints by Lea Nikel, Moshe Shamir's 'Avraham ba-boker' with prints by Menashe Kadishman, Else Lasker-Schüler's 'Aleikḥ aḥalom ḥarishit' translated by Natan Zach with prints by Yigal Tumarkin, Haim Gouri's '85 shirei ahavot' with drawings by Avigdor Arikha, Czesław Miłosz's 'Or yom ṿe-zeh' translated by David Weinfeld with drawings by Raffi Lavie, Tom Seidmann-Freud's 'Masa ha-dag' translated by Hayim Nahman Bialik, Leah Goldberg's 'Shir | Ir' (lost poems), Shimon Bouzaglo's 'Midsha'ot Hollywood', and Varda Berger's 'Kokhav ha-ḥayim / Planet of Life' with poems and paintings. Even Hoshen remains a small, family-run private press. Its identity is closely tied to the craftsmanship of letterpress printing and artistic bookbinding, and to collaborations between visual artists, poets, and authors. The press is not a mass-market publisher; its editions are aimed at bibliophiles, collectors, and institutions. The official website serves as a catalogue and sales platform, listing books by year, by subject, and by series, and offering a subscription to 'Shevo'.

Even Hoshen was founded in 1994 by Uzi Agassi, a historian and art curator, as a private press. The idea of opening a private press came to Uzi after many years as an art curator and as a book lover—a bibliophile. With his knowledge in typography and book design, Uzi brought together the work of artists from the visual art world with poets and authors to create uniquely aesthetic volumes of the highest quality in both form and content. Later, his son Ido joined the press, choosing to specialize in the art of bookbinding and letterpress, thus participating in the creation of books worth looking at as well as reading. Together, as father and son, they produce books in limited editions, printed in letterpress on high-quality paper, accompanied by original etchings, prints, or woodcuts, with special handmade bindings, elegantly presented in hand-crafted boxes. The books are exhibited in libraries, museums, galleries, and private collections around the world. The press operates from Raʻananah, Israel. It organizes its output into series named after the stones of the ḥoshen (the biblical high priest's breastplate): 'Pitdah' for poetry, 'Aḥlamah' for children's books, 'Sapir' for limited editions with numbered and signed prints by artists such as Moshe Gershuni, Aviva Uri, Naftali Bezem, and Uri Lifshitz, 'Bareket' for religious books in artistic format, and 'Nofekh' for Hebrew prose. In addition, the press publishes unique books on plastic arts, printing arts, and typography, and offers artistic binding services. Most of its books are printed in the elegant Hebrew typeface Drogolin. Since 1998, Even Hoshen has published the poetry journal 'Shevo' (שבו), edited by Uzi Agassi. The press also runs a customer club, sells books through its website, and accepts manuscript submissions. Notable books published by Even Hoshen include Israel Pincas's 'Be-yam ha-atik shelanu' with prints by Lea Nikel, Moshe Shamir's 'Avraham ba-boker' with prints by Menashe Kadishman, Else Lasker-Schüler's 'Aleikḥ aḥalom ḥarishit' translated by Natan Zach with prints by Yigal Tumarkin, Haim Gouri's '85 shirei ahavot' with drawings by Avigdor Arikha, Czesław Miłosz's 'Or yom ṿe-zeh' translated by David Weinfeld with drawings by Raffi Lavie, Tom Seidmann-Freud's 'Masa ha-dag' translated by Hayim Nahman Bialik, Leah Goldberg's 'Shir | Ir' (lost poems), Shimon Bouzaglo's 'Midsha'ot Hollywood', and Varda Berger's 'Kokhav ha-ḥayim / Planet of Life' with poems and paintings. Even Hoshen remains a small, family-run private press. Its identity is closely tied to the craftsmanship of letterpress printing and artistic bookbinding, and to collaborations between visual artists, poets, and authors. The press is not a mass-market publisher; its editions are aimed at bibliophiles, collectors, and institutions. The official website serves as a catalogue and sales platform, listing books by year, by subject, and by series, and offering a subscription to 'Shevo'.

• 1998

  Started publishing the poetry journal 'Shevo', edited by Uzi Agassi.

• 1994

  Even Hoshen founded by Uzi Agassi as a private press.

Bibliophilic private press producing high-quality, artistically crafted limited editions.

• Pitdah series

  Poetry series.

• Aḥlamah series

  Children's books series.

• Sapir series

  Limited editions with numbered and signed prints by artists.

• Bareket series

  Religious books in artistic format.

• Nofekh series

  Hebrew prose series.

• Shevo journal

  Poetry journal published since 1998.

1. 1אבן חושן official websiteevenhoshen.co.il
2. 2Even Hoshen pageevenhoshen.co.il
3. 3Wikidata entry for Even ḥoshenwikidata.org
4. 4Hebrew Wikipedia article on אבן חושןhe.wikipedia.org