Lot 39
"Jus regium Hebraeorum" (The Law of the Kings) by Wilhelm Schickard – The Question of Monarchy in the Bible – Leipzig, 1674 – Engravings
Mishpat HaMelech / Jus regium Hebraeorum e tenebris rabbinicis erutum & luci donatum, by Wilhelm Schickard. Leipzig: Friderici Lanckischi [Friedrich Lanckisch], 1674. Latin and Hebrew.
A political-theological work by Hebraist and astronomer Wilhelm Schickard (1592-1635), the inventor of the first calculating machine.
This work uses Jewish texts to analyze political theory in the Bible. Schickard argues that Judaism supports the idea of monarchic rule and the king's privileges (nevertheless, he also presents Jewish sources that object to monarchy). The work is illustrated with several small in-text illustrations, including a map of Palestine (engraving; with Hebrew text). Engraved frontispiece portrait of the author.
Wilhelm Schickard was among the first to translate passages from Rabbinic literature to Latin; his work had an influence on contemporary Protestant scholars, many of whom could not read Hebrew.
[7] ff., 482, 50 pp. + [1] engraving, 19 cm. Good condition. Stains and minor blemishes. Marking in ink on front endpaper. Leather-covered binding, slightly worn. Sticker on the front board. Small tears to spine.
