Litwinsky House - Joint Issue Estonia-Israel

The Litwinsky House is an outstanding architectural monument in Tel Aviv. It was built by Yaakov Elhanan Litwinsky (1852-1916), a well-known businessman who immigrated from Odessa. Before that he had purchased one of the original sixty-six lots in Ahuzat Bayit, the nucleus of the future Tel Aviv. The house he built with his family at 22 Achad Ha’am Street was one of the most impressive houses in this new neighborhood.

In 1930s the son of Yaakov Litwinsky, Mr Maurice Litwinsky (1888-1951), played a noteworthy role developing political and economic relations between the Republic of Estonia and (then) Palestine. Maurice Litwinsky was appointed Honorary Consul of Estonia in Jaffe and Tel Aviv on April 5th, 1929 by the Foreign Minister of Estonia. The Consulate was officially opened on May 15th, 1930. Maurice Litwinsky’s consul’s office was located on the second floor of the Litwinsky House.

Today the residents of Tel Aviv as well as tourists including the citizens of Estonia visiting Israel, can admire the Litwinsky House, a professionally restored building with an image close to its original architectural idea. Stopping at it one can take a moment to look back at the historical mix of architecture and diplomacy which the Litwinsky House embodies.