On the Great Wealth of the Shapira Brothers, owners of the Slavita Hasidic Printing Press

Yosef Perl in his brilliant satirical work מגלה טמירין Revealer of Secrets, notes at the end of his introduction the great wealth of the Shapira Brothers, owners of the Slavita Printing Press. The Slavita press was founded by R. Moshe Shapira, son of Rabbi Phinehas of Korets. Later R. Moshe's two sons, Shmuel Abba and Pinchas, took over the administration of the press. The press printed only religious works and legend has it that they dipped the printing presses in a Mikvah before putting them to use.

title page of the first edition of מגלה טמירין

Mention of the Slavita Press starts on the 4th line

Perl in attempting to show how the printing of holy books brought great wealth to it's publishers brings the Slavita Press as an example stating "with G-d's help they became extremely wealthy". On the flip side, the printers of Haskalah materials were forced out of business, at a great monetary loss, such as the printers in צידון. צידון has been suggested to be Tarnopol, Perl's hometown, see below the article by Yonatan Meir in Tabitz 2008, apge 564, footnote 34 discussing this. Perl himself printed a Haskalah orientated Calendar in 1814.

Though a satirical work, the book was intended (and succeeded for a while) to be taken literary by the Hasidim and the above statements were undoubtedly based in reality.

Iraqi Government demanding back the Jewish Artifacts they plundered decades ago

Haggadah from 1902, hand-lettered and decorated by an Iraqi youth photos/u.s. national archives and records administration

For those of you who missed it, the new Iraqi government has a new deep interest in Judaism and in all things Jewish. In 2003 American Forces discovered in Saddam Hussein's basement a treasure trove of Jewish artifacts stolen from the Jews who were either hanged or chased away in the 1940s and 1950s. The relics were under several feet of water and heavily damaged.

The collection was brought to America for restoration, but now our dear Iraqi friends, showing their great history of preserving things Jewish, demands them back. What they could want them for I have no idea, but I sense part of them wanting it, is the satisfaction that we will not have it. As Stanley Urman, executive vice president of JJAC, stated “jus ex injuria non oritur,” which in international law means that a state cannot assert legal rights to property illegally obtained. “[The materials] were seized from Jewish institutions, schools and the community. There is no justification or logic in sending these Jewish archives back to Iraq, a place that has virtually no Jews, no interest in Jewish heritage and no accessibility to Jewish scholars.”

But the theater of international diplomacy will continue unabated.

The Clash between East and West; Rabbi Yosef Messas of Tlemcen, Morocco and Rabbi Nathan Neta Leiter of Lviv (Lemberg), Ukraine (was Poland)

Rabbi Yosef Messas (1892-1970), was of the greatest and most famous Poskim and Community Leaders in Morocco. His ability to bring together an encyclopedic knowledge of Halacha, a love for the common Jew and a profound understanding of the issues facing the Jew of his day are legendary. His method of dealing with religious issues, and being willing to investigate how much halakha could be adapted in order to take into account the realities of the modern world, has made him the poster boy for those trying to show where the Sephardic approach differed from that of the Ashkenazim.

This approach, naturally did not sit well with the Rabbis of Eastern European Jews. Though they must have had very little interaction, I discovered a response written to R. Messas by Rabbi Nathan Neta Leiter, who held the position of Rabbi in Lemberg before WWII. Leiter read through the Shu"t Mayim Hayyim of Messas and this letter was in response to things he saw in the book. His Response to Messas appears in Zion Lenefesh Haya of Rabbi Leiter, published after the author's death in 1964. Below is scans of the Responsa as it appears in Leiter's book.

Here are some quotes from the above responsa:
אכן תורה דכתיב בה אמת לא אוכל לכחד ולגלות לכ"ת גם זאת כי מצאתי גם דברים אשר לא ישרו בעיני ולא אוכל לעבור" "עליהם בשתיקה בל יאמרו מושתקי רבנן ש"מ דניחא להו
"Regarding the Torah which is written within it "Truth" prevents me from not saying that I found within it (your responsa) also things which did not sit well in my eyes, and I can not go over them in silence, lest they say, the Rabbis were quite thus they must agree with it"

"ואם יבוא שאלה כזו לפנינו היינו משיבים לשואל הכבד ושב בביתך"
"If such a question would appear before us, we would respond to the one asking to respect himself and stay in his home"

One of the Responsa which Rabbi Leiter could not sit silent against, was Rabbi Messas' Responsa regarding eating from the Slaughtering of a Shohet which did not observe the Shabbat. The Responsa appears in Shu"t Mayim Hayyim, printed in Fes in 1934. Here is the conclusion of the responsa:

הרי לך ידידי קורא חביב כמה צדדים ברורים, להאמין אלו הקצבים על הבשר היוצא מתחת ידם, ואפילו צד אחד יספיק להתיר, וכל שכן כולם ביחד. ואם כן בפה מלא נאמר שכל הקונה מהם בשר, סמוך לבו לא יירא, רק שיאכל וישמח בנפש טהורה. ועם כל זה ידי לא רפתה מהם, רק מעת לעת אני מעורר את הקהל לעמד עמי בדבר מצוה כזה, אולי נצליח להטותם הדרך, לעשות הישר בעיני אלוקים ואדם

Rabbi Messas permitted to eat from the meat of butchers in his town of Tlemcen, after trying unsuccessfully to convince the butchers to close for Shabbat. Messas felt that as the people were eating the meat regardless, and all other efforts failed, it was important to find a leniency within the Halacha.

Here is the entire Responsa as it appears in Shu"t Mayim Hayyim

The DEUTSCHER VEREIN German Club in Yeshiva University in 1950 and it's arguably extremely bad taste

In the 1950 Yearbook of Yeshiva University, Masmid, among the many clubs of the school appears the Deutscher Verein. Just 5 years after the end of the Holocaust, it is striking how insensitive the students were to the Holocaust Victims and how very German this were, and proud of it too.
Here is the entire description of the club as it appears in the Masmid

Deutscher Verein 

The Deutscher Verein, casting aside the 

anti-Teutonic narrow-minded prejudices that 

afflict some fanatic Jews, devoted itself as 

usual to the advancement and upholding of 

Pan-Germanic Kultur at Yeshiva. 

The emphasis was, as usual, on the crassly 

physical side. Not to the extent of fraterniza- 

tion with the Frauleins, of course, but the 

amount of "Bier und Pretzels" that was con- 

sumed was simply staggering. Nothing like 

the food in a Constipation camp! 

Those whose classes adjoin the German 

Room know what it is to try doing one's 

homework to the incessant strains of 

'"Deutschland Unter AUes," "Stille Nacht, 

Heilige Nacht" and (oh, yes!) "Mein Hut Er 

Hat Drei Ecken." And of course Rosenberg 

is no tyrant (After all, hasn't he shaved off Adolfian Zupp-shtrainer? ) — but WHY do they keep voting him the best-dressed German Professor at Yeshiva.?.? 

It is presumed that the vast student interest in the German Club has some explanation in the annals of mass psychology. At any rate, the students have always flocked (despite the admission charge) to the Bierfests, doubtless under the influence of some Aryan Socity Fuehrer's hypnotic ranting. 

While I'm at it, here are some Photos of our dear old Sheldon Silver, in the 1965 Masmid Yearbook, Sheldon was 21 at the time. Sheldon graduated from the Rabbi Jacob Joseph High School on Manhattan's Henry Street and then attended Yeshiva University for his undergraduate Studies.

Hat tip: Dr S. Sprecher

The Library of Hacham Ovadia Yosef A"H boarded up to prevent "souvenir takers" during Shivah

The library of the Rav during the Shiva

6000 People were said to have come to pay their respects after the passing of Hacham Ovadia Yosef A"H. The massive library of the Hacham including thousands of volumes with the Hacham's handwritten notes, were boarded up for the duration of the Shiva to prevent anyone who in an emotional outburst might find it fitting to take home a book as as souvenir.

The Journalist Moshe Zamir suggested that the library was boarded up for another reason, to keep the Kabbalistic aspect of the Hacham hidden, the Hacham's Kabbalistic books and manuscripts. It is said that he left over in manuscript a commentary on Etz Hayyim of R. Haim Vital and much else, and for now, the family wants to keep it under covers. 

A forgotten 18th Century Manuscript Haggadah discovered in Osem Soup Carton

                                                                                                         news source: The Times of Israel


When a North Manchester resident took a few items to an antique auction house in Macclesfield in July, nothing of particular value was discovered. But after hearing a casual mention of several more items at home, a representative made an appointment for a field visit.

William Forrest from Adam Partridge Antiques took a tour of the Manchester residence and when he came to the garage, was handed an old Osem soup carton filled with Hebrew books. ”Is there anything you can do with these?” he was asked.

Though not an expert in Hebrew manuscripts, Forrest says he immediately knew he was holding something special.

Inside the hand-painted Haggadah was inscribed: No 47 Exposition du Alvert Hall (a reference to a catalog listing at the Anglo-Jewish Exhibition at the Albert Hall in 1887); Written 5486 – 1726; Written by Aaron son of Benjamin Woolf for Mendel Oppenheim.

Initial research actually dates the rare goatskin vellum volume to 1725, and points to it having been written and illuminated by Aaron Wolf ben Benjamin Zeev Schreiber Herlingen of Wewitz. Herlingen was a scribe and illustrator who also held an official position at the Imperial Library in Vienna.

“We are really excited about this remarkable find,” says antique auction house owner, Adam Partridge. Known for his BBC TV appearances on “Flog it” and “Cash in the Attic,” Partridge says the haggadah “has been greeted with huge excitement by a number of senior rabbis and people in the community to whom we have shown it.”

According to the auction house, a similar Wolf haggadah from the Cornelius J Hauck Collection, when listed in a 2006 Christies sale in New York, sold for an unexpected $408,000, though it was estimated to sell for $100,000 to $150,000.

The “Manchester Garage Haggadah” will be listed at the Partridge Judaica sale on November 22.

It “is certain to reach a six-figure sum,” says Partridge.

Not too shabby for a neglected volume stored in a soup carton.

Moses Mendelssohn Letter sold Oct 3, 2013 at Skinner's Auction IS APPARENTLY A FORGERY ! buyer paid $5,100 for a fake

On Oct 03, Skinner held a Judaica Auction, lot 22 was a letter written by Moses Mendelssohn, which sold for $5,100. This letter is a apparently a Forgery, or an early copy, sold unknowingly by Skinner. The lot was sold as part of the collection of the leading Zionist, Nahum Goldmann, who passed away in 1982.

This is a great accusation to make, but after reviewing the facts, the conclusion seems indisputable.

THE PHOTO OF THE LETTER AS IT APPEARED IN AUCTION CATALOG

Above is the photo as it appears in the auction catalog. Unbeknown to the catalogers, this letter was written to Rabbi Yaakov Emden, and was published by Rabbi Yaakov Emden in התאבקות published in 1762. As is known, Mendelssohn referred to R. Emden as his Rabbi and their correspondence regarding delaying burial according to halacha appears in She'elat Yaavetz, Emden's responsa. Thankfully I have the Renaissance Hebraica facsimile of Emden's book and was able to look up the original letter as Emden transcribed it. Below is a photograph of Emden's transcription of the Letter he received from Mendelssohn as it appears on דף קסב in התאבקות.

3 lines into the letter R. Yaakov Emden notes in parentheses that "from this point on, the letter was burnt"  מכאן ואילך נשרף והאריך בענין כת הטומאה של ש"צ שר"י שהם גרועים מחזירי יער עד
In the copy of the letter, most likely copied in the 19th century from התאבקות the letter is complete and nothing is burnt or missing !

Jehoshua Pierce, a dealer who specializes in this field and who has seen numerous Mendelssohn pieces informed me that he independently made the conclusion that the handwriting on the letter offered was not of Mendelssohn. For comparison, see below a letter in the Leo Baeck Collection written by Mendelssohn.

A MENDELSSOHN LETTER FROM THE LEO BAECK COLLECTION

In addition, there are differences in the actual handwriting of the one offered for sale and Mendelssohn's known handwriting, as well as several grammar differences from Mendelssohn's own style. For example, Berlin is spelled on the above letter בערלין while Mendelssohn wrote is as ברלין, and see the header of the page which has the acronym בע"ה while Mendelssohn wrote is as ב"ה.


I think we can safely assume that the sale of this letter was done unknowingly by all parties involved, but this case just reinforces what most of us already know, that even auction houses can err. A buyer of anything, especially of something of such historical importance should do his own diligence in evaluating the item offered.

Many Thanks to Yosef Goldman for discovering the original letter in התאבקות and sharing with me the source and pointing out the difference.

Yichus as a selling point for a book, but at times, used selectively 1914 צוואת דוד/כתר ראש

It is now familiar practice for authors to tout on the title pages of their book their lineage, often in larger font than their own names, to a point where it can be hard to discern who the actual author is.

In 1914, Rabbi Shlomo Yehuda Leib Hacohen Ashkenazi published 2 works printed in 1 volume, צוואת דוד containing the will of his father, and כתר ראש which contains stories of the Vilna Gaon heard from R. Chaim of Volozhin. Interestingly, the author states different parts of his lineage in the 2 works he published, for the צוואת דוד he states he is a descendant of the Chacham Tzvi, and in the book on the Vilna Gaon he states he is a descendant of the Vilna Gaon. Presumably this was done to appeal to family members of both branches, each for the book that would relate to them.

Siddur dated to 840 A.D. Said to be discovered, owned by David Green (accused of antisemitism)

The Green Collection, owned by American billionaire David Green, owner of Hobby Lobby  (recently accused of antisemitism for not stocking Jewish merchandise) recently announced that they discovered in their collection a Jewish prayerbook dated to 840 a.d. with Carbon-14 testing. This would be by far the earliest copy of the Siddur which we would have knowledge of to date, and would should much light on the history and development of our Siddur.

Unfortunately, the Green Collection did not release much details and delayed the detailed announcement of the finding and that details will be released in late 2014 or early 2015 by the Green Scholars Initiative, so we will never know for sure until then regarding the details. The document is described as being in its complete parchment and original binding, factoids that are quite stunning considering its age. Written in Hebrew, the script is described as “archaic” — so old in fact that it uses Babylonian vowel pointing (a system that is no longer in use).

Dr. Stephen Pfann, a senior scholar with the Green Scholars Initiative and president of The University of the Holy Land in Jerusalem, along with his students participating in the research project, made the initial discovery among other items from The Green Collection.

To date, Pfann’s team has been able to identify six distinct sections in the siddur, including: 100 blessings/morning prayers (the earliest form of what is in today’s Jewish prayer books, even older than those of Rabbis Amram Gaon and Saadia Gaon); the Passover Haggadah; a poem on the Song of Songs in conjunction with Sukkot; a poem on the End Times (apocalyptic text of an international battle); a poetic form of the book of Zerubbabel; and a unique section entitled, “Salvation in Zion”

We will have to wait it out to see the details of this Siddur, though if true, should be able to shed much light on to the development of many of our prayers.

The Jewish prayer book (Photo Credit: The Green Collection/Demoss)

 This news comes only months after the oldest complete scroll of the Torah from 1155-1225 has been discovered in the University of Bologna library, where it had been mistakenly catalogued a century ago as dating from the 17th century.

In this undated photo provided by Alma mater Studiorum Universita’ di Bologna, a document that an Italian expert says to be the oldest known complete Torah scroll. In an interview Wednesday, May 29, 2013 Perani said he immediately recognized that it had been wrongly dated given its script and other graphic notations. Two separate carbon-14 dating tests confirmed the revised dating. (Photo: AP/Alma Mater Studiorum Universita’ di Bologna)

"In a telephone interview Wednesday, Perani said he was updating the library’s Hebrew manuscript catalogue when he stumbled upon the scroll in February. He said he immediately recognized the scroll had been wrongly dated by the last cataloguer in 1889, because he recognized that its script and other graphic notations were far older. 

Specifically, he said the scroll doesn’t take into account the rabbinical rules that standardized how the Pentateuch should be copied that were established by Maimonides in the late 12th century. The scroll contains many features and markings that would be forbidden under those rules, he said."

If a thief is caught stealing a book, he must pay back sevenfold! - ספר עיני העדה by רב אליהו הכהן of Izmir

In 1863, Sefer Eine Ha'Edah an extensive commentary on the Torah, by Rabbi Eliyahu HaKohen of Izmir, was published for the first time, 134 years after the author passed away. In Parashat Mishpatim (pg 117:) the author explains the verse in Mishle לא יָבוּזוּ לַגַּנָּב, כִּי יִגְנוֹב לְמַלֵּא נַפְשׁוֹ כִּי יִרְעָב. וְנִמְצָא - יְשַׁלֵּם שִׁבְעָתָיִם, אֶת כָּל הוֹן בֵּיתוֹ יִתֵּן
which translates as: People do not despise a thief if he steals to satisfy his soul when he is hungry, but if he is caught, he will pay seven-fold; he will give all the goods of his house.

R. Eliyahu asks 3 questions on the Pasuk, Why does the verse say to satisfy his soul and not his appetite? why does he have to pay 7 times, more than someone who is גונב שור או שה? and why does the Pasuk go on to say, he will have to pay all the goods in his house?
To answer this, Rabbi Eliyahu explains that the Pasuk is referring to someone who stole a Sefer; and the verse is explained in such a manner: do not despise a thief if he steals a book to satisfy his soul, because his soul yearns for study and he has no books, as learning from a book fills one's soul. If though, he is found to have such a book in his house of his own, he will pay seven-fold, as it is discovered that he stole, not for study, but rather to resell. Since there is no way to pay back for time lost from studying Torah, he must pay back all he owes to try to repay the owner for his loss.