Inscribed and Sealed Inscribed and Sealed 32 Saint George Street London W1S 2EA Tel: +44 20 7493 0876 [email protected] shapero.com CONTENTS 03 Jewish thought and aesthetics 25 Jewish traditions 33 Jewish cooking 43 Zionism 55 Prayer-books and Bibles JEWISH THOUGHT AND AESTHETICS 1. CINQARBRES, JEAN. De re Grammatica Hebraeorum opus, in gratiam studiosorum linguae sanctae methodo quam facilima conscriptum, Authore Iohanne Quinquarboreo, Aurilacensi. [Hebrew Grammar]. Martin Le Jeune, Paris, 1549. Second edition (first published in 1546) of the popular Hebrew grammar book, dedicated to the Venetian Jew Paolo Paradisi. Jean Cinqarbres (Latin name: Johannes Quinquarboreus, 1514-1587) was a French grammarian of Hebrew and was considered one of the foremost linguists of the 16th century, famous for his extensive knowledge of Hebrew grammar and syntax. He had occupied the chair of Hebrew and Syriac languages at the College de France until his death. The distinctive printer’s woodcut device on the title page of the work (see Renouard, P. Marques 828, p.264-265) first belonged to Conrad Nòbar, then passed to Jaques Bogard and later to Martin Le Jeune, but this size is not shown under this bibliographical entry. Second edition. 4to, (22.5 x 17 cm); 182, [2] pp., text in Latin and Hebrew. Marginal tears to first two leaves. Ownership signatures to title page and many marginal notes to test in Latin in old brown ink. Late half-marbled blue boards, corners rubbed. Price: £1,250 [ref: 97221] 4 Shapero Rare Books JEWISH THOUGHT AND AESTHETICS JEWISH THOUGHT AND AESTHETICS Shapero Rare Books 5 THE F I R S T I L LU S TRAT ED BOOK P R I NT ED I N HE B R EW 2. IBN SHAHULA, IS AAC . Meshal Ha-Kadmoni. [The Primeval Fable]. Meir Parenzo, Venice, [1546-1547]. Illustrated collection of moral fables and animal stories by Isaac ben Solomon ibn Abi Sahula, in rhyming prose interspersed with verse. Ibn Sahula, who was both a scholar and a physician, was born in 1244 in Guadalajara (Castile) and was a wanderer for much of his life. He was a student under the Kabbalist R. Moses of Bugros, and wrote secular poetry until around 1281, when his outlook changed. It was then that he began to write Meshal Ha-Kadmoni. Ibn Sahula writes that his material is original but based on the Talmud and Midrashim, and that in style he has followed the example of the prophets who presented moral lessons in allegorical form. He also sets out to demonstrate that Hebrew is as suitable a vehicle for conveying moral lessons as Arabic. The stories show both Kabbalistic and Indian influences. The use of animal characters is not typical in Jewish writing, but Ibn Sahula employs this device in order to deliver the tale’s moral in the clearest way possible. While animals in Christian fables were usually characterised by a single dominant characteristic (the cowardly rabbit, the cunning fox), Ibn Sahula gave the animals in his fables complex characters and highly specific religious tendencies: the birds pray in a ‘minyan’ in a synagogue; the deer prays three times a day; and the lion dreams of making a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. Some eighty woodcut illustrations grace the 64 leaves of this book, with one or two captioned woodcuts to a page. Though the illustrations resemble those of incunabula editions, Meir Parenzo, the printer of this edition, commissioned an entire new series of woodcuts providing more detail and artistic sophistication. The illustrations were prepared by three different hands. The first edition of this work was printed circa 1491 in Brescia by the Soncino family printers, with different illustrations. Second edition. Small 4to, (18 x 12 cm); 64 ll., printer’s device on title, 80 woodcut illustrations; some soiling and staining, including dampstaining at margins, owners’ notes on title page and verso, a few marginal tears, most repaired, fore-edge final leaf chipped. Modern brown calf, blind fillet and corner devices, spine gilt tooled and lettered. Vinograd, Venice 319; A.M. Habermann, Kiryat Sefer vol. XXIX pp. 199-203; Amram, pp. 367-71; Roth, Jewish Art, cols. 476-77; Heller, The Sixteenth cent. Hebrew book, Vol.1, pp. 332-333. Price: £37,500 [ref: 95122] 6 Shapero Rare Books JEWISH THOUGHT AND AESTHETICS JEWISH THOUGHT AND AESTHETICS Shapero Rare Books 7 8 Shapero Rare Books JEWISH THOUGHT AND AESTHETICS JEWISH THOUGHT AND AESTHETICS Shapero Rare Books 9 ONE OF THE GR E AT E S T E AR LY S C I ENT I F I C HE B R EW BOOK S 3. DELMEDIGO, JOS E PH SOLOMON OF CR E T E . Sefer Ma’ayan Ganim; Sefer Ilem. Menashe ben Israel, Amsterdam, 1628-29. ‘The most sumptuously illustrated of early scientific works in Hebrew, and unique in printed Hebrew literature before the modern period.’ (National Library of Canada Catalogue, The Jacob H. Lowy Collection, 1981, no. 80). Profusely illustrated work on mathematics, geometry, astronomy, physics, medicine, Kabbalah and metaphysics. The work consists of five books: Sefer Ma’ayan Ganim, Sefer Chukat Shamayim, Sefer Gvurot Hashem, Sefer Ma’ayan Chatum and Sefer Ilem. Ma’ayan Ganim (Fountain of Gardens) - contains complicated geometrical studies. Chukat Shamayim (Laws of the Skies) - contains astronomical and some geographical studies. Gvurot Hashem (Might of God) - contains more astronomy, as well as some mechanical physics. Ma’ayan Chatum (Sealed Fountain) - more mathematics and physics, Delmedigo refers to Euclid in the beginning of the book, and even describes the acoustics of a string instrument at some point. In this book Delmedigo also describes a liquid-in-glass thermometer with a scale, which was officially invented only decades later, in the 1650s, by Ferdinand II the grand Duke of Tuscany. Sefer Ilem (The book of Gods), which is bound as the first book in some copies, is a philosophical questions and answers book. The book became suspect in the eyes of the elders of the Sephardi community when it first came to light and a committee was formed to investigate the matter. The book had to be translated orally to Portuguese and Menashe Ben Israel, a prominent Portuguese Rabbi and publisher of the work, had to sign that certain portions of the work would not be published. Joseph Solomon Demedigo (aka YaShaR = Yosef Shlomo Rophe of Candia, 1591-1655) was born in Crete (Candia) and had travelled extensively throughout his lifetime, living in Cairo, Constantinople, Vilna, Lublin, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Venice and was buried in the old Jewish cemetery of Prague. He studied at the University of Padua under Gallileo. He met Leone Modena in Venice and was strongly influenced by him. He’d served as court physician to Prince Radziwill of Poland. For more about Delmedigo see I. Barzilay, Yoseph Shlomo Delmedigo (Yashar of Candia): His Life, Works and Times (Leiden, 1974); A. Neher, Jewish Thought and the Scientific Revolution of the Sixteenth Century (1986), pp.251-252; H. Friedenwald, Jewish Luminaries in Medical History - Catalogue (1946), p.111. The frontispiece portrait of Delmedigo was engraved by W. Delff after a painting by C. Duyster. First edition. 4to, (20 x 15.5 cm), [8], 190, 80, [2], 83 pp.; wide margined copy. Five parts in one, two titles. Engraved frontispiece portrait of the author with marginal repairs supplied. With the scarce additional introductory leaf in Latin. Numerous illustrations to text. Censor’s inscription in Russian to last page, dated September 21, 1837, stamped by the Russian state appointed Rabbi. Ownership inscription in different hand reads ‘Leiba Tanks...ovitch’. Marginal tear to one page without loss of text, first t itle page professionally remargined; few light stains. Modern vellum with morocco label to spine and twin silk ties, housed in a matching cardboard slipcase. Vinograd, Amsterdam 20; Fuks, Amsterdam 150-1; Silva Rosa 6; Heller, The Seventeenth Century Hebrew Book, Vol. I, 470-471 pp. Price: £15,000 [ref: 97083] 10 Shapero Rare Books JEWISH THOUGHT AND AESTHETICS JEWISH THOUGHT AND AESTHETICS Shapero Rare Books 11 12 Shapero Rare Books JEWISH THOUGHT AND AESTHETICS JEWISH THOUGHT AND AESTHETICS Shapero Rare Books 13 4. PRIESTLEY, JOSEPH. Letters to the Jews; Inviting them to an Amicable Discussion of the Evidences of Christianity, second edition; [WITH:] Letters to the Jews. Part II. Occasioned by Dr. David Levi’s Reply... [WITH:] LEVI, David. Letters to Dr. Priestly [sic], in Answer to those he Addressed to the Jews, second edition; [WITH:] Letters to Dr. Priestley, in Answer to His Letters to the Jews, Part. II [etc.]. I and II. Birmingham, for the author, by Pearson and Rollason, and London, Johnson, 1787; III and IV. London, for the author, Johnson, Walker and Parsons, 1787 and 1789. 1787 and 1789. UNCOMMON VOLUME THAT CONTAINS BOTH PARTS OF PRIESTLEY’S LETTERS AND LEVI’S REPLIES. By featuring both men’s letters, this very nice copy enables us to follow the theological debate that took place between Joseph Priestly and David Levi at the end of the 18th century. In 1786, Joseph Priestley published his Letter to the Jews, which urged them to convert to Anglicanism. According to him, Judaism and Christianity were so close that both religions could be united. Hence his suggestion that the Jews convert to Christianity while preserving some of their own traditions, like the Shabbat. Levi, on the other hand, responded to Priestley by advocating for the independence of the Jewish faith. His replies led to many arguments with Christian scholars and entailed a new series of letters written by Priestley and included in the present book. The latter also features several of the other letters that Levi wrote to the Christian divines who had criticised his response to Priestley.