Аукцион 100 Important Hebrew Manuscripts and Books from the Victor (Avigdor) Klagsbald Collection
от Kedem
Вторник, 21.1.25, 19:00
8 Ramban St, Jerusalem., Израиль

The importance of the Victor (Avigdor) Klagsbald Collection can hardly be overestimated, charting nearly a millennium of Jewish life across the globe – some one thousand years of religion, culture, literature and art.

Mr. Klagsbald, who passed away 5 years ago, was one of the most prominent collectors of Jewish art in the second half of the 20th century and a noted scholar, who built a collection of exceptional quality, much of which is now being offered for auction.

Each item in the collection was professionally catalogued by Mr. Klagsbald himself, who also added detailed descriptions in neat, cursive French along with enclosed photographs. These descriptions were indexed by subject and kept in organized dossiers, of which our researchers made use while preparing the present catalogue. Many items from the collection were made known to the public throughout the years in books and articles he authored; we select for particular mention Klagsbald's catalogue of Moroccan manuscripts, published in Paris in 1980 – Catalogue des manuscrits marocains de la collection Klagsbald – and his book A l'ombre de Dieu: dix essais sur la symbolique dans l'art juif, published in Belgium in 1997. Mr. Klagsbald was also one of the founders of the Museum of Jewish Art and History (mahJ) in Paris, and authored the catalogue of the Cluny collection now preserved in the museum, which was exhibited in the Israel Museum in 1982.

The present catalogue contains a selection of manuscripts, important printed books in first and rare editions, copies of distinguished ownership and with annotations, and letters and signatures spanning Orient and Occident, all scarce to be found. The two hundred lots featured in the catalogue include early manuscripts such as Sefer HaPeliah scribed in Tripoli (Lebanon), 1497; Moshav Zekenim, scribed in Crotone (Italy), 1473 – formerly Ms. Sassoon 409; Midrash HaGadol, written by the renowned scribe R. David son of Benaiah of Sanaa (Yemen), 1473; and several volumes of halachic rulings from Morocco, including hundreds of autographs and thousands of signatures by Moroccan rabbis from various cities. One of the volumes contains a letter handwritten and signed by R. Chaim ibn Attar, the Or HaChaim (many items in the collection originate from the Abensour collection in Fez).

The parchment manuscripts include decorated and illustrated siddurim such as the Arizal's Tikunei Shabbat, crafted by the scribe and illuminator Meshulam Simmel of Polna in Vienna, 1714, and Haggadot illustrated in the style of the Moravian school. The books with handwritten glosses include Zohar Chadash – the personal copy of kabbalist R. Moshe Zacuto, with his glosses, as well as the signature of the Chida; a manuscript of Sefer HaKavanot compiled by kabbalist R. Natan Nata Hannover, with his signature and many glosses in his hand; and a Pri Etz Chaim manuscript, scribed by R. Moshe of Liuboml, which belonged to R. Avraham Gershon of Kitov, brother-in-law of the Baal Shem Tov. The catalogue also includes unpublished manuscript works, including one authored by a disciple of the Pnei Yehoshua and R. Yehonatan Eibeshitz, with an original letter of ordination from the latter; and a Chassidic work with original letters of approbation by Rebbe Mordechai Dov of Hornostaipil and his sons.

On the occasion of its 16th anniversary and its 100th catalogue, Kedem Auction House is honored to present the Klagsbald Collection for public auction. We strive – and will continue to strive – to offer our clients rare and important items and to present them in high-quality and accurate catalogues. We have endeavored to uphold this aspiration in the present catalogue as well.


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ЛОТ 11:

Manuscript – Moshav Zekenim – Tosafists' Commentary on the Torah – Crotone (Italy), 1473 – Ms. Sassoon 409


Цена с учетом комиссии и НДС: $ 25 850
Стартовая цена:
$ 20 000
Эстимейт :
$30 000 - $50 000
Комиссия аукционного дома: 25%
НДС: 17% Только на комиссию
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Manuscript – Moshav Zekenim – Tosafists' Commentary on the Torah – Crotone (Italy), 1473 – Ms. Sassoon 409

Manuscript, Moshav Zekenim – commentary of the Tosafists on the Torah. Crotone (Calabria, southern Italy), 1473.


Neat Sephardic semi-cursive script, in black and red ink (the titles, headwords, colophons of Torah portions and colophon of scribe are written in red ink).
Colophon at end of work: "On Sunday, 25th Tishrei 1473… in Crotone, I wrote and completed this book of Torah novellae, I the knight of sciences Mr. Shmuel son of David ibn Shoham, and I wrote it for myself…".



Moshav Zekenim is one of the works preserving the teachings of the Tosafists on the Torah. This is a unique work written towards the end of the period of the rishonim (see below at length). The present manuscript is Ms. Sassoon 409, based on which the work was first printed by R. Solomon David Sassoon in 1959. His father, the famous philanthropist and collector R. David Sassoon, had purchased the manuscript in Aleppo in 1903 (see: Sassoon, Ohel David, introduction, p. XI).


The scribe of the manuscript – R. Shmuel son of David ibn Shoham – added (in the margins and in the main text) glosses and additions with his own novellae, signing his name in various ways, such as: "So it appears to me… Shmuel son of David ibn Shoham" (p. 116); "I, Shmuel son of David ibn Shoham say…" (260); "Says Shmuel son of D[avid] i[bn] Sh[oham]" (80), and more.
The physician R. Shmuel ibn Shoham is known to us from another manuscript, Ms. Paris 1128, containing Hebrew translations of several medical works, translated and copied by R. Shmuel. His colophons appear at the end of three of these works, dated 1465-1466. At the end of one of them he signs: "Shmuel son of David ibn Shoham called Burla" (beryllus is the Latin translation of the shoham-stone); and at the end of another he adds details on himself and the location of copying: "I completed this book in Taranto, I Shmuel son of R. David ibn Shoham the physician called Burla of Corfu…", indicating that he was a physician, lived for some time in Taranto and was originally from Corfu.
Two additional manuscripts written for R. Shmuel ibn Shoham are Ms. St. Petersburg EVR II A 24, an anthology on medical topics written on his behalf in 1465, as noted in the colophon: "Completed here in Nardò on 10th Marcheshvan 1465, by Yeshuah Kohen son of David Kohen, written for Mr. Shmuel the physician son of David ibn Shoham called Burla"; as well as Ms. Paris 308, She'iltot, which was written for R. Shmuel in 1467 as noted in the colophon: "On Tuesday, 3rd Iyar [1467], I, Menachem… son of R. Yosef Vivanti wrote this book of She'iltot for R. Shmuel the physician son of R. ibn Shoham called Burla". The latter manuscript contains glosses and additions handwritten by R. Shmuel ibn Shoham (see further: Mirsky [ed.], She'iltot D'Rav Achai Gaon, Part I, Jerusalem 1960, preface, pp. 28-29 and note 8).
In the present manuscript, the writer added several illustrative drawings, on pp. 35 (tents of the foremothers), 267 (map of Eretz Israel) and 268 (examples of the grape cluster being transported by the spies).
On blank leaves at end of manuscript (pp. 312-318), inscriptions in various hands, not belonging to the work, including: a list of days and their respective planets, bibliomancy with a Chumash, selected initials and numerical values, a mnemonic for shofar blowing, the beginning of the Alphabet of Ben Sira.
At the top of the first page of the manuscript – signature: "Purchased by the servant, Chaim Mordechai Labaton" – R. Chaim Mordechai Labaton (1780-1869), a leading Torah scholar of Aleppo and Chief Rabbi of the city. Author of Nochach HaShulchan (see on him: LiKedoshim Asher BaAretz, p. 64). Next to the above signature – another deleted signature, next to which is written: "Sefer Moshav Zekenim".
At the end of the work, after the colophon, appears an ownership inscription: "I purchased this book of R. Eliyah son of R. Shabtai together with… and a commentary on Neviim Rishonim… I, Yosef de Modena". Next to this inscription is written in square script: "And it is called Moshav Zekenim", and another inscription (in cursive script): "This is what it was called by R. Ch[aim] Attiya" – R. Chaim son of Yeshayah Attiya (ca. 1751-1795), a leading Torah scholar of Aleppo. A halachic letter of his was printed by the Chida in his Chaim Shaal (II, 36), and some of his novellae were printed in other books (see: LiKedoshim Asher BaAretz, pp. 131-132).
The name of the work, Moshav Zekenim, was finalized in the edition published by R. Solomon Sassoon. As stated above, this name appears at the beginning and end of the present manuscript, but in a hand later than that of the scribe. The above inscription appears to state that R. Chaim Attiya of Aleppo coined this name, apparently following the name of a collection of the Tosafists' comments on the Torah printed in Livorno, 1783, called Daat Zekenim (named by the publisher R. Yaakov Nunez-Vaez). Another anthology of the Tosafists' comments on the Torah was printed in Livorno, 1840, by the name Hadar Zekenim.


The present work belongs to the broad genre of Tosafists' comments on the Torah, which includes many works. The Tosafists' teachings are mainly known from the anthologies of Tosafot on the Talmud and other halachic works. The Tosafists' novellae and comments on the Bible were preserved concurrently in various works written in the 13th-14th centuries in France and Germany. A variety of works belonging to this genre have been preserved in manuscripts and printed books, some of which have known titles, authors or editors, while others are anonymous. This genre includes: Daat Zekenim, Minchat Yehudah, Hadar Zekenim, Sefer HaGan, Chizkuni, Paneach Raza and commentaries on the Torah by R. Yehudah HeChasid, Rabbenu Efraim, the Rokeach, R. Yosef Bechor Shor, the Rosh, and others. Moshav Zekenim is another exemplar of this genre, as an important source for the novellae and comments of the Tosafists on the Torah. Recently, R. Yaakov Gelis' Tosafot HaShalem project has come to light, methodically gathering all the comments of the Tosafists on the Bible from the many printed and manuscript sources.


The present manuscript is a uniquely adapted work on the Torah, apparently authored in the early or mid-14th century. It cites many comments by R. Yehudah HeChasid, the Rokeach, Chizkuni, Rosh and others. The scribe of the present manuscript – R. Shmuel ibn Shoham – appears to have copied (and perhaps adapted) it from an existing work, rather than having authored it himself, for a number of reasons (see for instance: Yitzchak Lange, Sefer Moshav Zekenim, HaMaayan, XII, 3, Nisan 1972, pp. 75-76). However, he also added his own comments. Parallels to Moshav Zekenim appear in three manuscripts, authored in France or Germany ca. the 13th century, which all appear to derive from the same circles: comments and rulings on the Torah by the Tosafist R. Avigdor Katz, disciple of R. Simchah of Speyer (published recently); Kol Bo by R. Shemariah son of R. Simchah of Speyer, fragments of which were published by Prof. Simchah Immanuel; and the commentary to Sifrei in Ms. Mantua 36 (see: Simchah Immanuel, Shivrei Luchot, p. 172, note 89; and p. 259, note 172).
Notably, Moshav Zekenim does not contain the teachings of the Tosafists alone, but also cites many comments by Sephardi rabbis such as R. Avraham ibn Ezra, the Rambam, Ramban and others, and also contains anonymous comments. Nevertheless, the Tosafists are given the central stage in the work, and it is sometimes the only source to preserve their teachings.


The vast majority of the work is present, but it is lacking a few leaves at the beginning and in one place in the middle. It begins at Bereshit 2:3 (according to R. David Sassoon, one leaf is missing at the beginning of the manuscript, while according to Lange, ibid., four leaves are missing at the beginning); and apparently one more leaf is missing at the end of the Torah portion of Vayera and beginning of Chayei Sarah. On several leaves (at the end of the manuscript), the scribe left blank spaces, apparently due to damage in the original in those places, rendering them illegible.


[318] pages. 27.5 cm. Good condition. Stains, including dampstains and dark stains to several leaves. Partially detached gatherings. Tears and light damage to several leaves. Some marginal glosses slightly trimmed by binder. Leather binding with ink decorations (characteristic of Aleppo), partially detached, with light damage.


Provenance: Formerly Ms. Sassoon 409 (Ohel David, pp. 75-81).