Magnificent illustrated Kesubah on parchment. Venice, 1737
Large parchment kesubah with an arched top richly decorated with colorful illustrations and monumental inscriptions that fill every available space.
The kesubah is celebrating the marriage of the groom Masaud Rakah to the bride Sorelina daughter of
Yitzchak Noveira. (Isaac Navarra, or Noveira, was the great-grandson of Bassan. Isaac’s brother, Menahem Navarra, was the author of several wedding poems, presently housed in the Jewish Theological Seminary). The wedding date was on Wednesday, 10th of Adar 2, 5497 [March 3, 1737].
Description of illustrations:
The kesubah is illustrated and handwritten with beautiful script in two columns: one contains the kesubah text and the second contains the engagement conditions. It is signed by the officiant, witnesses, and the groom twice, under both columns. On both sides of the kesubah text are decorated pillars, topped by an arch with medallions depicting the twelve zodiac signs. Above the right pillar are the words “B’simana Tava (with a good sign)”, and above the left pillar the words “Uv’Mazlya M’Alya (and with a prosperous fortune)”.
At the top of the kesubah is an illustration of the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai with a depiction of Moshe and the Jewish nation beside the burning mountain, topped by the Luchos HaBris.
In the upper section, below the illustration, and around the sides of the kesubah, are illustrations of angelic, botanical, and bird motifs, interwoven with many medallions containing verses, inscriptions, and various illustrations on the themes of blessing, marriage, long life and sustenance, warmth and cold, summer and winter (symbolizing the eternity and continuity of the couple), and the Temple vessels symbolizing
bayit neeman be-yisrael. The kesubah is surrounded by borders inscribed with the blessings given to Boaz and Rus, as recorded in the Book of Rus.
One of the witnesses on the kesubah is Rabbi Shlomo ben Rabbi Dovid Altras, a revered scholar of the Venice Yeshivah who served as an expert editor and proofreader for the Venice Hebrew press.
Kesubahs from this period, of such size and quality, are extremely rare.
This Kesubah was formerly part of the prestigious Furman collection.
For a full overview of the design of this profusely illustrated kesubah, see
The Art of the Ketubbah, by Shalom Sabar, New York:2002, vol. 1 pp 68-73.
Condition: Fair to moderate. Minor tears with slight text loss, filing holes, a water stain, and light fading of colors.
Size: Height: 95 cm. Width: 65 cm.
Provenance:
1. Furman Collection, pp. 240-241
2. Yechezkel Toporowitch Collection.
See a similar item in the kesubah collection of the Israel Museum, featured in Shalom Zabar’s book "Mazal Tov, " page 55, also from Venice, from a period close to that of the current kesubah.
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