Lot 64
Letter from the Rabbis of Jerusalem to Montefiore – Rabbi Yeshayah Bardaki, Rabbi Shmuel Salant and the Dayan Rabbi Uri Shabtai – Jerusalem, 1855
Lengthy letter in neat handwriting, signed twice by three leading rabbis of Jerusalem: R. Yeshaya Bardaki, R. Shmuel Salant and his brother-in-law the dayan R. Uri Shabtai of Salant. Jerusalem, 25th Sivan 1855.
Addressed to Sir Moses Montefiore, with a detailed report of the reception of charity funds, sent to Jerusalem in various ways (primarily through R. Yaakov Tzvi Mecklenburg, author of HaKetav VehaKabbalah, rabbi of Königsberg).
The letter concludes with blessings and prayers for the wellbeing and longevity of Sir Moses Montefiore and his wife Lady Judith Montefiore. With the handwritten signatures of R. "Yeshaya son of R. Yissachar Ber", R. "Shmuel Salant" and R. "Uri Shabtai son of R. Chaim".
This is followed by an additional letter to R. Eliezer HaLevi, Montefiore's secretary, signed by the same three rabbis.
R. Yeshaya Bardaki (d. 1862) was the son-in-law and successor of the disciple of the Gaon of Vilna, R. Yisrael of Shklow, distinguished leader of the Perushim community in Jerusalem.
R. Shmuel Salant (1816-1909), studied in his youth in Salant together with R. Yisrael Salant (founder of the musar movement). After his marriage with the daughter of R. Yosef Zundel Salant, he immigrated to Eretz Israel in 1841 to serve as posek and rabbi of the Perushim community of disciples of the Gaon of Vilna in Jerusalem. In his capacity as rabbi of Jerusalem, a position he held for close to seventy years, he founded the educational and charity institutions in the city, established the Beit Din and strengthened the Ashkenazi community. He was renowned for his brilliance and practical approach in halachic rulings and in running all communal matters in Jerusalem and worldwide.
R. Uri Shabtai Salant, second son-in-law of R. Yosef Zundel Salant, was a dayan in the first Beit Din founded by his brother-in-law R. Shmuel Salant in 1841, and a founder of the boys' school in the Hurva of R. Yehuda HeChasid. His signature appears on a document pertaining to the building of the Hurva in 1837, and on the jewelry regulation in 1852.
[1] leaf. 27 cm. Thin, light-bluish stationery. Good condition. Stains. Minor tears. Address and postmarks on verso.
