Jacob Saphir, a Jerusalem Jew of Lithuanian origin, functioned as a shaliah de-rabanin, i.e. an ambassador entrusted with an important mission to collect funds for communities in Palestine between the Diaspora Jews. On the second of his two missions he journeyed to Egypt, Yemen, India, Singapure, Australia and New Zealand. He took detailed notes about local Jewish communities, their life conditions, religious customs and beliefs. Non-Jewish cultures were not neglected. After his return, he reworked his notes into a travelogue published in two volumes entitled Eben Saphir (Lyck 1866 and Mainz 1874). Up to the present moment there exists neither an in-depth study of Saphir’s book nor even a partial translation from the Hebrew original.