Bible Encyclopedias
Anton, Carl

The 1901 Jewish Encyclopedia

Author; born in Mitau (Courland), of Jewish parentage; lived in the eighteenth century. He claimed descent from ?ayyim Vital Calabrese. After studying for seven years at Prague under Jonathan Eibensch�tz, Anton trave?ed in the East, and on his return became a convert to Christianity, and was baptized at Wolfenb�ttel. The duke of Brunswick appointed him professor of Hebrew at Helmstedt. He was distinguished from the usual Jewish convert to Christianity by the fact that, though he occasionally reviled his former coreligionists, he also spoke well of them, even vindicating them in his book on the Jewish oath ("Einleitung in die J�dischen und Rabbinischen Rechte, dabey Insbesonderheit von einem Judeneide," etc., Brunswick, 1756), against some of Eisenmenger's aspersions. Anton took part in the well-known dispute between Jacob Emden and Jonathan Eibensch�tz, in which he warmly defended the latter�some say at Eibensch�tz' request ("Kurze Nachricht von dem Falschen Messias, Shabbethai ?ebi," etc., Wolfenb�ttel, 1752; "Nachlese zu Dieser Nachricht," Brunswick, 1753). He wrote a Latin tract on the legend of "The Wandering Jew," entitled "Commentatio Historica de Jud�o Immortali in qua h�c Fabula Examinatur et Confutatur," Helmstedt, 1756; translated Abraham Jagel's catechism," Le?a? ?ob" (Good Instruction), Brunswick, 1756; and gave a description of a rare copy of "Shul?an 'Aruk Eben ha-'Ezer," to be found in manuscript in the City Library, Hamburg. He also wrote "Fabul� Antiquitatum Ebraicarum Veterum," etc., Brunswick, 1756. His "Sammlung einiger Rabbinischer Oden nebst einer Freyen �bersetzung," Brunswick, 1753, is a curious production, as the odes are written neither in Hebrew nor in Rabbinic, and would be unintelligible but for the accompanying German translation.

Bibliography:
S. A. H.
Bibliography Information
Singer, Isidore, Ph.D, Projector and Managing Editor. Entry for 'Anton, Carl'. 1901 The Jewish Encyclopedia. https://www.studylight.org/​encyclopedias/​eng/​tje/​a/anton-carl.html. 1901.