A Rare Folio of Rashi on Shas – Handwritten on Parchment, Spain Circa 14th Century

A Rare Folio of Rashi on Shas – Handwritten on Parchment, Spain Circa 14th Century

An exceptionally rare folio page of Rashi’s commentary on parts of Bava Metziah, which was written in Spain, circa late 14th or early 15th century. After the Jews were expelled from Spain during the first inquisition in 1492, this manuscript was then taken to Germany, as indicated by the very early Ashkenazic glosses written on the lower left margin. 

The left portion of the manuscript contains Rashi’s commentary on Bava Metziah Daf 17a (Shnayim Ochazin), whereas the right portion contains Rashi’s commentary to Daf 23b-24a (Eilu Metzios). 

Manuscripts of Rashi’s commentary on the Talmud are of exceptional rarity, especially those of Spanish origin. According to Prof. Dr. Ezra Chwat, Head of the Department of Manuscripts in the National Library of Jerusalem, rarely do we find complete, large-sized manuscripts of this nature. According to his research, the JTS library in New York is one of the only libraries which possesses a manuscript of Rashi on Bava Metziah from this time period, and only tiny fragments remain. Our manuscript however contains entire portions of Rashi and is in excellent condition.

The rarity and importance of Spanish manuscripts cannot be overstated. Unlike Ashkenazic manuscripts written in France or Germany, the Sephardic manuscripts were preserved according to the original Mesorah without adding annotations or corrections to the text. As we see clearly in the present manuscript, the annotations and corrections were added by an early Ashkenazic hand, likely to correct Rashi’s text according to the version they had in Ashkenaz.

This manuscript, which was written in 14th century pre-expulsion Spain, is without doubt a piece of our Holy tradition, which somehow survived intact throughout the ages. It was likely removed from a binding, which preserved it entirely intact until today. A true rarity!

Manuscript description: 

[1] large sheet of parchment, measuring 48x27cm. Text written in neat Spanish script, lightly faded brown ink. 27 lines of text per side. Area of handwritten text: Approx. 21x17cm.    

In good condition. A small tear seen on upper right and left corners, affecting two letters of text.