Shir Hashirim with Commentary by Rabbi Avraham Halevi Temech. Sabbioneta, Italy, 1558
Rare miniature.
This miniature Shir Hashirim was printed alongside the kabbalistic commentary of Chacham Rabbi Avraham Halevi Temech.
Rabbi Avraham Halevi Temech was among the late 14th century sages of Gerona and a contemporary of the Ran and Rivash. Repeated persecutions forced him to flee his native Gerona to Eretz Yisrael, yet the harsh physical and economic conditions in the Holy Land caused him to return to Europe where he settled in Italy and remained there until his passing in 1394.
This book features additional commentary by Rabbi Yehoshua Ibn Shuib and was edited by Rabbi Refael Yosef Trivash.
Sabbioneta, 1558. First edition. 63, [1]. Page size: 10.5 cm. The colophon features the printer’s device of Tuvia Puah. Device partially lacking, restored professionally . Good condition.
Reading Shir Hashirim on Pesach
There is a longstanding tradition to read the megillah of Shir Hashirim on the first night of Pesach after the seder, and then to read it aloud in shul on Shabbos Chol Hamoed Pesach.
There are many sources and explanations for this custom, among them the reference in Shir Hashirim to the Exodus in the verse, “Lesusasi b’richvei Pharoah” and the fact that the entire scroll symbolizes the eternal bond between Hashem and Bnei Yisrael.
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