Iggeres Rabbi Shrirah Gaon
Mainz, 1873
Printed on parchment!
Printed entirely on parchment, this remarkable copy was sent by the editor Ber Goldberg to Rabbi Doctor Eliezer Halevi, renowned secretary of Sir Moses Montefiore.
Eventually, this work was acquired by the famed collector David Suleiman Sassoon who marked the purchase date in the flyleaf as 17/4/1936.
While called a “letter”, Iggeres Rabbi Shrirah Gaon is actually a complete, comprehensive work discussing the writing of the Mishnah and editing of the Talmud, as well as the order of the Talmudic Sages, Sabora’im and Geonim. It is regarded as a fundamental source, and in many cases, is the only source of many Jewish historical facts.
The letter was authored by Rabbi Shrirah Gaon, Rosh Yeshivah of the hailed Pumbedisa Yeshiva, in response to inquiries and questions sent by Rabbi Yaakov ben Rabbi Nissim of Kairouan, North Africa in the year 888.
The present edition of the famed Iggeres was printed based on a manuscript edited and corrected by Ber Goldberg (1801-1884).
The flyleaf, which is also crafted of parchment, features a beautiful dedication by the publisher that was written in the year 1881 as well as a small leaf bearing a letter of recommendation.
The title page contains an inscription by Rabbi Doctor Eliezer Halevi (1709-1888), recipient of this prestigious gift. The latter was a student of the Chasam Sofer and Maharam Banet. In 1838 he accepted the post of serving as Sir Moses Montefiore’s personal secretary and advisor.
Mainz, 1873. Page Count: [1], 68 sides.
Page Size: 18 cm. Half leather binding by the Sassoon Library.
Provenance:Rabbi Doctor Eliezer Halevi, personal secretary to Sir Moses Montefiore.
Sassoon Library. It first appeared during the sale of the Sassoon Library on Sotheby’s in London, 1971 as Lot #295.
Sefarim Printed Entirely on Parchment
The vast majority of sefarim printed throughout the ages were printed on paper. Only a small minority, were printed on parchment, and always to ensure that it would be a unique piece.
The present copy of Iggeres Rabbi Shrirah Gaon on parchment was a private custom order that the editor wished to convey as a prestigious gift to the personal secretary of Sir Moses Montefiore who managed all the latter’s accounts.
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