Some of the most precious art collections remain forever hidden from public view – books and paintings whose value is nearly priceless, often stored under lock and key in vaults across the globe by anonymous collectors.

One fine art connoisseur determined to break that long-established mould is the erudite Israeli-German art collector Dr Aaron Roni Neumark – a collector of Judaica and classical art who is sole trustee and custodian of the Neumark Family Trust and Collection, which comprises more than 5,000 largely unseen historical items dating from the 15th to the 19th centuries.

The Neumark family is mentioned as far back as the mid-13th century in German civil and trade documents, and, as such, Dr Neumark is keeper of a collection that includes impressive etchings by Rembrandt, which you can view exclusively here on squaremile.com.

Dr Neumark currently divides his time between homes in London, Berlin, and Tel Aviv, where a select handful of his treasures are displayed in an unpretentious ‘at home’ manner that allows his guests to get up-close-and-personal with priceless artefacts from antiquity.

His London home, for example, houses some incredibly rare books and manuscripts, such as an atlas printed on parchment by the 16th-century cartographer Agnese Battista and a rare copy of the Magna Carta.

At just 48 years old, he is regarded as one of the youngest collectors at such an elevated level, and in the next two years he intends to establish his own private museum.

Square Mile invites you to enjoy a selection of his unseen Rembrandt etchings here, before he shares his collection with the masses.

Exclusive etchings by Rembrandt

Square Mile: What would you say drives you as a collector? Would you describe it as obsession or passion?

Roni Neumark: Well, any serious collector of art will tell you that building a collection is an art in its own right, and that an immense amount of passion goes into it. It is an all-consuming practice that is deeply rewarding on many levels, but the passion I have for my collection is something even more like a spiritual calling. It comes with a long family history, and I feel a very strong sense of duty to my heritage.

I would say that I know the intimate details of around 5,000 items in the collection, and that knowledge is something that I carry with me in spirit all of the time. It’s an obsession, for sure, as my family so often tells me, but, honestly, I think it even goes beyond obsession.

To me, this collection represents a living history, and I feel an enormous responsibility to transmit that history into the future – ensuring that all of these works are revered in perpetuity.

I think it even goes beyond obsession; this collection represents a living history

SM: Can you tell us what lies at the core of the collection?

RN: At its core, the collection is a significant record of Jewish life over five centuries amassed by generations of my family, and it is my intention that the collection will eventually be shared with the world.

The collection holds oil paintings, drawings, rare books, engravings, etchings, illustrated and illuminated scrolls and manuscripts, as well as other visual works on porcelain, parchment, silk, and paper, dating from the 15th to the 19th centuries, representing some 500 years of art, culture, and legacy.

You will also find some of the rarest books in the world in the collection, such as first editions by Shakespeare and Copernicus, Bibles, prayer and religious books on vellum, and sole copies of Hebrew books from the earliest stages of printing in Europe.

SM: That is impressive. What would you say are particular highlights for you?

RN: The highlights of the Neumark Collection are far too numerous to list – a notable selection includes etchings by Rembrandt van Rijn that depict scenes from the Old Testament, ancient Bible and Talmud texts.

Some Judaica collections tend to focus very much on niche items, such as books, or manuscripts only, but I believe that I have infused a far more contemporary perspective – I have expanded the collection to include not only rare books and oil paintings, for example, but also caricatures, satirical prints, and significant documents.

The importance of the collection lies in it being a leading and private visual presentation of centuries of Jewish traditions and ceremonies.

Alex Maguire

Alex Maguire

SM: Would you describe yourself as a bibliophile?

RN: I certainly do have a passion for rare books. One of the most remarkable treasures is a sole copy of the complete Bible printed entirely on parchment in Hebrew, in one-volume quarto format.

It is known as the ‘Bomberg Biblia Hebraica’, the first and scarcest edition of the Daniel Bomberg Bibles, printed between 1517–1518, in Venice. I live with this book, and I love it dearly.

I appreciate the scent of the pages and the tactile experience of handling it. Books from centuries past possess a distinctive aroma that is entrenched in their pages, particularly when printed on parchment or vellum. That scent is everlasting.

When I hold one of my 16th-century books, I feel transported back in time. They are time machines.

Roni Neumark

Mariano Vivanco

SM: Is it true you live with your own private Mona Lisa?

RN: Yes. To come back to your question about highlights, one from the collection would have to be my 16th-century painting of ‘Mona Lisa’, executed by an immediate follower of Leonardo da Vinci – most probably at the court of King Francis I of France, who bought the original from the master himself.

It is thought that Leonardo da Vinci and his students painted five original versions of the Mona Lisa, and I am fortunate enough to own one of them.

The painting actually went on sale at auction credited merely as being by a ‘follower of Leonardo da Vinci’ and was sold by a private collector who had bought it from its previous owner in Japan, circa 1990, but after painstaking and meticulous research it turned out to have been his immediate follower.

I like to tell my friends that I now live with the original supermodel.