The Origin of the Mis-Attribution of Got fun Avrohom to Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berdichev

The Prayer Got fun Avrohom is a prayer in Yiddish traditionally said on Motzae Shabbat for good luck and is attributed to R. Levi Yitzchok of Berditchev. The prayer predates him by centuries though and is found in early Ashkenaz Prayerbooks, for example in the 1723 Amsterdam ברכת המזון כמנהג אשכנז ופולין.

An early version of Got fun Avrohom in the Amsterdam 1723 Birkon

1727 Frankfurt Birkon also with Got fun Avrohom

The mis-attribution is a result of a book titled Shene Hameorot published in Kishinev in 1896. At the end of the book, the editor of the book writes how he found an old "trusted" manuscript in which it was written that this prayer was authored by R. Levi Yitzchok of Berditchev and he is certain that one who says the prayer 3 times prior to Havdalah is guaranteed to succeed. 

The editor apparently was not aware that the prayer was around for centuries, but his attribution to R. Levi Yitzchak stuck and from shortly after we see many other books attributing to him the prayer as well. Despite the error, the prayer has since been published in numerous Prayerbooks and Zemirot vols with the error in attribution as well. 

Title Page of Shene Hameorot, 1896 Kishinev

At end of book where the prayer is brought down

Below is Yad Shalom printed in 1910 in Piotrikov, quoting the Shene Hameorot and spreading the mis-attribution

An Entry in a Journal Book for the date of founding of state of Israel ה אייר תש"ח

title page of the Daily Planner/Journal from 1948

The handwritten entry in the Journal

   

Discovered in an old diary/daily planner from the year 1948 (תש"ח) is a fascinating hand-written entry, by a person who apparently did not view the founding of the Zionist State too favorably. In a play on words on the words of the Bible in Kings I chapter 6, the entry reads:

ויהי בשמונה שנה ושבע מאות שנה וחמשת אלפי שנה לבריאת העולם. בשנה ההיא בחדש זיו הוא החדש השני למלך השטן על נדחי ישראל ויבן הבית לכבודו, והבית אשר בנה המלך בן גוריון לכבודו אגורה שויו והרס אחריתו וקלון ובוז נפלתו .ואולם הכנסת על פני היכל הבית מחריב אומה יעודו על פני רחב הבית מעקר דת תורה על פני הבית

For comparison, here is the text from Kings I: ויהי בשמונים שנה וארבע מאות שנה לצאת בני ישראל מארץ מצרים בשנה הרביעית בחדש זו הוא החדש השני למלך שלמה על ישראל ויבן הבית ליהוה ב והבית אשר בנה המלך שלמה ליהוה ששים אמה ארכו ועשרים רחבו ושלשים אמה קומתו ג והאולם על פני היכל הבית עשרים אמה ארכו על פני רחב הבית עשר באמה רחבו על פני הבית

hat-tip:Menachem Silber

Pages from the 1523 Bomberg Edition of the Alfassi being used as a binding

In the binding of a copy of Berit Avot by Rabbi Avraham Coriat, published in Livorno in 1862 by Elijah ben Amozag, I found 2 pages from the 1523 Bomberg Edition of the Alfassi being used as backing for the covers.
The Alfassi survived centuries only to end up buried in a binding.
The 2 leaves are from Masechet Ketuvot.

Steimatzky סטימצקי‎, the oldest and largest bookstore chain in Israel sold at a $40,000,000 loss

Steimatzky סטימצקי, is the oldest and largest bookstore chain in Israel, founded by Yechezkel Steimatzky in 1925. Currently, the chain has over 160 stores throughout Israel. It is estimated that the company holds a 40% share in the Israeli book retailing market and employs over 700 people worldwide.

Perhaps a reflection of the current issues that bookstores worldwide are facing, Steimatzky recently sold after incurring heavy losses in the last few years. The chain was purchased only several years ago by markstone capital at $55 million, it currently is estimated to have debt amassing to over $90 million. The new purchasers are Yafit Greenberg and her investment group G. Yafit.

Steimatzky has gotten itself in to a burden of troubles recently, with several of the largest publishers in Israel withholding stock from the chain after their balances went unpaid. There were accusations hurled at it's president Iris Barel of misuse of funds and extravagant salaries as well.

It remains to be seen if Steimatzky will be able to survive the times and become profitable again.

Selections of Piyutim said in Germany under Nazi Rule

Within a Wilhemsdorf, Germany edition of a Selichot volume, I found 3 separate sheets of paper. Each contains the list of Piyutim chosen by the congregation to be recited that year on Yom Kippur for each of the prayers. Over the generations, German Jewry had accumulated numerous different Selichot Prayers and the custom developed to rotate the selections for each year, thus ensuring that none would be forgotten and that all shall be said at least occasionally. The 3 sheets were for the year 5736 (1935), 5737 (1936) and 5739 (1938).

below are other such selections from the period which I came across, one printed and one typewritten

hat-tip: Dr. S. Sprecher

Pepsi-Cola being used as a medical cure for stomach illnesses in Morocco 1940s

Going through a batch of Hebrew Documents from Morocco from a recent collection I acquired, I came across this entertaining letter. The writer, is writing of his reminiscences of a childhood friend with whom he grew up with in Ben-Ahmed, a small town in Morocco in the 1930s and 1940s.

Here is a portion of the 4 page letter: (the spelling mistakes in original have been corrected)
אני גם זוכר שרצה ללמוד לנהוג ברכב. היה לנו אוטו רנו מודל 1935 היה נוסע בו קדימה ואחורה, עד שיום אחד נכנץ בעץ ונבהל נורא, הכחשנו את המקרה מאבא ז"ל
"I also recall how he wanted to learn to drive an automobile. We had a Renault 1935 Model, he was able to go forwards and backwards, until one day he drove in to a tree and was frightened greatly. We denied this occurrence from our father, may he rest in peace."
היה סובל מהקיבה, לגבי תרופות רק מספרי הרמב"ם. העדיף לשתות פפסי-קולה הטיב לו לקיבה. רבים פנו אליו בשאלות רפואיות ולכולם היה לו תשובה...
"He suffered from stomach pains, and used only medicines brought down in the works of Maimonides. He preferred to drink Pepsi-Cola and this helped his stomach. Many people approached him with medical questions and for all he had an answer.........."

 

1935 Model Renault

Flyers for a Candidate in Israeli Elections in Judeo-Arabic - Ashkelon 1960s

 In the 1960s, Rabbi Reuven Ben David VeYosef, a Moroccan Rabbi ran for the city elections in Ashkelon. A large population of the city were Moroccan Jews and political flyers promoting him as canditate were published in Judeo-Arabic!

Notice on back wrapper the mention of the candidate being an example of Torah Im Derech Eretz.

The candidate, Rabbi Reuven Ben David VeYosef, was a learned Rabbi and author of several Rabbinic works. In Morocco, he headed the Otzar Hatorah branch in the town of Ben-Ahmed, and in Israel, he was active for many years on the political scene in Ashkelon within the Mafdal party. His son recently held the position of Deputy-Mayor of Ashkelon.

The Making of a modern-day Kabbalist, a document from the days of Baba Baruch in Ashkelon

Baruch Abuhatzeira (born 1941), also known as Baba Baruch, is an Israeli Kabbalist and Rabbi. He is the son of the leading Moroccan Rabbi Israel Abuhatzeira, also known as the Baba Sali.

Prior to his career as a Kabbalist, Baba Baruch had a short political career, when he was elected as Deputy Mayor of Ashkelon. He was later tried and sentenced to five years in prison for corruption and bribery connected to his role as deputy mayor. I recently acquired a document from his days in the political world, hand-signed by him. The document is a response to a request to have permits issued to build on a property, Baba Baruch's response was that 500 lira were first needed to be deposited in to a specific bank account detailed in the letter.

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A Hebrew Sheet Printed in Tripoli, Libya by bookseller Yitzchak Cohen

Below are scans of a Piyut recited on Yom Kippur by the Jews of Tripoli. This sheet was published in Tripoli by the bookseller Yitzchak Cohen.

One of the many obstacles of running a publishing and bookselling business in a place that was not exactly the center of the world, was that no one really knew where you were. To help with this issue, Cohen made sure to state on the sheet that he is located in Tripoli, which is on the continent of Africa. He reiterated this 3 times on the sheet, apparently without much faith that potential customers would be able to place Tripoli on a map.

A Telegram from Cong. Beth Torah in Brooklyn in support of Rabbi Ovadia Yosef for Chief Rabbinate in Israel

Tucked inside a book I recently acquired I came across an interesting telegram sent from Congregation Beth Torah, A Syrian Synagogue in Brooklyn NY to the Office of the Prime Minister in Israel.

The telegram was sent in 1982, shortly before the first term of Rabbi Ovadia Yosef's Chief Rabbinate was to conclude. There was much debate in Israel at the time if to allow a second term. Eventually a law was passed preventing a Chief Rabbi from officiating for more than one term, thus preventing Rav Ovadia's reelection. The law which was widely viewed as being directed against R. Ovadia specifically was passed in part with support from Moshe Nissim, the secretary of treasury at the time, who was the son of the previous Chief Rabbi, Yitzchak Nissim

This telegram requests that the additional term be approved and is signed by the Rabbi of Beth Torah at the time, Rabbi Zebulun Lieberman. A noble effort, which unfortunately did not succeed.